|
8 Ideas for Organizing Your Child's Room
Clean your room!
Ugh. Oh, Mom. I'll do it later!
This same dialog is shared by millions of parents and
their children all over the world.
With the new school year upon us, you may have the
driving urge to get your child's room in order.
Where do you start? Here are a few ideas:
1. SCHEDULE: Schedule a specific date and time to
clean out your child's room. Your daughter or son, if
she or he is old enough, should be there to help.
2. DUMP OR DONATE: Have a large box on hand for items
you will be donating to your local charity or selling
at a rummage sale. Also, have a large plastic garbage
bag--maybe two or three--for everything you will be
disposing of. Your children can help here. Let them
know that every item that is of no use to them, that
they donate, will be helping another child. Also, tell
them that it's important to discard anything that will
never be used, to make room for new, useful items.
3. CLOTHES CLOSET: The clothes closet is usually a good
place to start. Pull everything out until it's completely
empty. Then, the only items that should be returned to the
closet are those articles of clothing or other items that
are going to be used again. This should eliminate clothing
that doesn't fit, is worn out, and so on. If you're not
sure if an item fits your child anymore, have him or her
try it on right now.
4. BASEBALL CAPS: Hang a baseball cap rack on the back
of your child's bedroom door to keep all caps neat and
organized. Ensure it's at a reachable level for a child's
height. Show him or her how to hang the caps on it
properly.
5. SHOES: Give your child a shoe rack to keep his or her
shoes organized, easily accessible and in one place. Show
your child how to organize shoes, keeping all pairs
together.
6. STUFFED ANIMALS, TOYS AND GAMES: Put up shelves in
children's rooms. This is usually a better solution for
toy storage versus containers, because the toys won't
get crushed and will be easily obtainable. Make sure the
shelves are at a reasonable height so that your child
can reach wanted items.
7. PAPER: Create a filing system for your child, to keep
artwork, rock star photos, blank paper, notes from family
and friends, etc. Use a portable filing container that is
capable of holding hanging files and that can be
transported to someplace else if necessary. The ones with
handles are nice, since they can be transported to different
homes, on vacation, etc. Some of these containers have
snap-shut compartments for pens, pencils, clips, and more.
8. RESPONSIBILITY: Teach your children to clean and
organize as soon as they're old enough to do so. If you
help them do this now, you will be helping them when
they're old enough to move out on their own. Devise a
simple daily checklist for maintenance. If you have two
children sharing the same room, divide the room in half
with an imaginary line. Describe this imaginary line to
each child. Assign each one the responsibility of keeping
their side clean and organized.
Copyright © 2000 Maria Gracia. Reprinted with permission from Maria Gracia's Get Organized Now! Web Site. FREE Idea-Pak, Ezine, Slideshows, Articles, Tips, Inspiration and Ideas at the Get Organized Now! website.
|
