Do you find yourself looking around at your child’s toy collection and becoming stressed out about the amount of toys in your home, and the fact that they are poorly organized? Are your kids constantly losing toys, or making huge messes without any clear idea of how to clean everything up?
First, find a special spot for each favorite toy. What are the toys she plays with most on a daily or weekly basis? What are the toys she asks for as soon as she gets home, and can play with for hours? Those are the toys that need a special, prominent place, in a special bin that she’ll know contain her favorites. That way, you’ll always know where key toys are, and she won’t end up rooting around in larger bins for her favorite toys and making a mess!
Think the sizes of your toy bins. Families often buy huge toy boxes or big, canvas bins to house massive amounts of toys which are often thrown into these oversized bins indiscriminately. Instead, buy small, shallow bins to house toys with many small parts. Buy larger bins for dress-up items, balls, or large stuffed animals. This will help you to find things more easily, and will eliminate the issue of small toys becoming lost beneath larger ones.
Think about a toy rotation. If there are simply too many toys in the mix at the moment, go through the toys and identify ones which are played with less frequently. Take those toys and put them in large bins in the basement or attic. Then, when several months go by, or when you notice your child growing bored of the toys he has on hand, swap them out again.
Encourage your child to consider parting with toys that she doesn’t play with anymore. Once or twice per year, go through the toy collection with your child and ask him which toys he has grown out of or doesn’t think he’ll play with in the future. Think about younger children you know who might enjoy them, or consider donating them.
If you’ve gotten your toy clutter under control, what methods did you employ? Tell us how you tamed your home’s toy collection in the comments section!