One of the challenges that parents face on daily basis involves dealing with toys – keeping your little one’s toys minimal, organized, and consistently entertaining can be undeniably difficult even for the most seasoned parents. So how can you keep your kids’ toys organized and somehow manage to ensure that they stay that way?
Set aside an empty area of a closet, attic, basement, or even under the bed where you can store toys when your kid isn't playing with them. Use drawers or bins to sort the toys based on the type and label them for future reference.
-
Declutter, dispose, or donate
Get rid of toys that you don't consider to be age-appropriate, and either donate them to charity or create a small box of a couple of things to keep around for when your friends' children pay a visit to your home. You want to remove any toys that have missing pieces or are broken to declutter and free up space.
After you clear out what you don’t need, the next step is to sort and minimize what you’re left with. It can be overwhelming for a kid to have out 6 baby dolls, 9 puzzles, 10 coloring books, etc. at one time. It is okay to keep all of these items if you choose to do so, but your child will likely need just 2-3 of these things at a time. Put the rest of the items in labeled bins and keep them in storage.
Come up with an organizational system that works for you. If you prefer bins, have your little ones put away their toys in a dedicated bin either labeled with a photo of the toy (if they can’t read yet) or with the toy name. Kids are more motivated to put away their stuff if have a dedicated and easy-to-reach place to do it. Other storage solutions you can try with this organizational system include:
- Toy hammocks
- Boxes
- Shelves
To make things easy for your child, group likes with likes – place all animals together in one bin, all the action figures in another, all the play food in another.
-
The importance of rotating toys out
It is no secret that kids get bored fast, and what may be their favorite toy today may not be something they want to play with tomorrow. The best way to keep them interested in their toys is to rotate them out every 1-2 months, more if they are home more often than usual. Consider doing a toy purge right before a gift-giving holiday or a birthday to make room for shiny, new ones.
Final Thoughts
In summary, to get started organizing your child’s toys, prepare a storage space where you can keep them when they’re not in use. You can then sort out the items to see what you want to keep or get rid of, as you don’t want too much clutter unnecessarily taking up space. Sorting will also help you determine the items that your child favors, and what can be stored away for a bit longer. Finally, choose an organizational system that works for you – bins, boxes, under-the-bed storage, etc.
