New Year, New You: 3 Steps to Declutter Your Kids’ Bedrooms
Whether your kids are three, nine or 17, getting (and keeping) their rooms tidy is a challenge. Here's how to tackle it
Have you ever walked into your child’s bedroom, stood there in shock, then walked out, closing the door behind you and the clutter? Rather than feeling as though you must pick your battles or tidy their rooms when they’re not home, read these tips to help reduce the mess and friction at home surrounding the state of your children’s bedrooms.
I suggest – before any rubbish bags come – out that you sit down and have a conversation with your child about why you want their room to be organised. Explain that a tidy room means they’ll be able to find things quickly and easily. Tell them their brains will work better in an organised space and that they’ll be able to think, study, relax and sleep with less distraction and clutter around them.
Remember too that if your child isn’t naturally organised or has hoarding tendencies, just telling them to tidy up will frustrate them as they won’t naturally understand how to. Instead, offer to help teach them using the tips below.
Set the vision
Whether I’m working with adults or children, at The Art of Decluttering I always work to establish the vision for their space.
In a child’s bedroom they may want space for reading, studying, gaming or hanging out with friends. They might like an area to craft, or space for a friend to sleep over. Once you have set the vision, you can get to work making that dream a reality.
5 Creative Ways to Organise Dress Ups
Whether I’m working with adults or children, at The Art of Decluttering I always work to establish the vision for their space.
In a child’s bedroom they may want space for reading, studying, gaming or hanging out with friends. They might like an area to craft, or space for a friend to sleep over. Once you have set the vision, you can get to work making that dream a reality.
5 Creative Ways to Organise Dress Ups
Respect their things
Teaching children the habits and discipline of decluttering is important, and nothing will undo that work quicker than a parent throwing out a child’s possessions without their permission. I work with lots of adults who have trouble with clutter and can remember it beginning with a parent throwing out their toys without consulting them first.
This doesn’t mean your child should be able to keep everything they want to, but consider the long-term goal of raising a mature well-rounded adult and involve them in the process.
Teaching children the habits and discipline of decluttering is important, and nothing will undo that work quicker than a parent throwing out a child’s possessions without their permission. I work with lots of adults who have trouble with clutter and can remember it beginning with a parent throwing out their toys without consulting them first.
This doesn’t mean your child should be able to keep everything they want to, but consider the long-term goal of raising a mature well-rounded adult and involve them in the process.
1. Discard rubbish
Grab a bin or garbage bag and get your child to throw in everything that they can quickly see is rubbish. I suggest you hold the bag and let them do the throwing. Broken toys, abandoned drawings, tissues, packaging… it all goes straight in the bin.
Grab a bin or garbage bag and get your child to throw in everything that they can quickly see is rubbish. I suggest you hold the bag and let them do the throwing. Broken toys, abandoned drawings, tissues, packaging… it all goes straight in the bin.
2. Corral toys they’ve outgrown
Help them create a separate bag of items to donate that they’ve outgrown. Explain that doing this helps make room for toys that they do still play with.
Help them create a separate bag of items to donate that they’ve outgrown. Explain that doing this helps make room for toys that they do still play with.
3. Organise what’s left
Does your child have masses of Lego? Do they love soft toys? Do they enjoy making jewellery or electronics? Take a look at what your child has chosen to keep, and help them create storage solutions for their individual needs.
5 Decisions That Can Lead to Clutter
Does your child have masses of Lego? Do they love soft toys? Do they enjoy making jewellery or electronics? Take a look at what your child has chosen to keep, and help them create storage solutions for their individual needs.
5 Decisions That Can Lead to Clutter
4. Find a home for everything
A great way for parents to guide children through the decluttering process – even for children as young as three – is to set natural limits.
Natural limits are constraints such as the size of their bedroom, how much storage space you can create at home, how many containers of toys they have, the size of those containers, and where toys are allowed to be stored in your house.
A great way for parents to guide children through the decluttering process – even for children as young as three – is to set natural limits.
Natural limits are constraints such as the size of their bedroom, how much storage space you can create at home, how many containers of toys they have, the size of those containers, and where toys are allowed to be stored in your house.
These limits can be quite easily determined by the amount of storage furniture you put into a kids bedroom. If you have multiple bookshelves, cube storage and a toy box, a child is going to fill it up with toys.
If however, you have one bookshelf and one open tub for large toys, then naturally less toys can be kept in the space.
If however, you have one bookshelf and one open tub for large toys, then naturally less toys can be kept in the space.
Once you’ve decided what storage will be used in their bedroom, help your child create a home for each item to ‘live’. By having a special place for everything, your child knows exactly where something belongs when they’ve finished using it and can easily pack it away.
Learning to declutter toys and keep their bedroom organised is an important skill for all children to learn, so take the time to show them the ropes and reap the rewards of not tripping over toys whenever you enter their bedroom.
Your turn
How have you navigated the trials and tribulations of organising your children’s rooms? Tell us in the Comments below, like this story, save the images, and join the conversation.
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How have you navigated the trials and tribulations of organising your children’s rooms? Tell us in the Comments below, like this story, save the images, and join the conversation.
More
Ready to start the new year with a major clutter bust? Read How to Declutter Digital and Printed Photos the Easy Way
If you storm into your son or daughter’s bedroom angry about the state it’s in and demand they clean it before they leave for school, you’re setting everyone up for failure. It’s important that the foundation of mutual respect is laid for the decluttering job to go well. If your child feels like you’re on their side and are willing to help them, they’ll usually respond quite well.
Need an expert to help whip your clutter into order? Find a professional organiser and storage designer near you on Houzz