Equip Your Kids To Clean Up After Themselves

Relax. That loud crash you just heard wasn’t the roof falling in; it was your kids opening the closet door in the playroom. Has the frustration of the never-ending mess led you to settle for stuffing the clutter into the closet and shutting the door? When you find yourself cleaning up several times each day, this may seem like a viable solution. If cleaning up after the kids has left you exasperated to the point where you just want to hide the mess behind the door, maybe you need a new plan of attack.

If your toy storage solution amounts to an intricate mountain of toys precariously stacked out of sight, how can you reasonably expect the kids to be willing to pick up after themselves? If you have a system in place that not only makes it possible but fun for kids to clean up themselves, then you might be able to do away with the unexpected crashes that come from the playroom or your kid’s bedrooms. Make it easy for them to select toys one at a time, and then make it easy for them to put it away.

Get Organized

The main reason why kids won’t pick up after themselves, aside from stubbornness, is that they can’t. If they aren’t able to get one toy out without pulling out fifty others, then how can you reasonably expect them to put them away when they are done? Use a system of bins clearly labeled to separate toys. If the kids can’t read yet, then use pictures on the bins to help them remember what goes where. You can organize toys by type or by whom they belong to. This will ensure that kids can get to the toy that they want without emptying the entire closet and put the toys away easily.

Encourage the Kids to Use the System

Create a system of rewards or points to encourage the kids to use the bins. Show them that if they refill one bin before emptying another, then it won’t take very long to clean up and they’ll always have a clean place to play with their other toys. Suggest that you might stick your head around the door occasionally to see who is using the bins properly. Tempt kids by mentioning the child who is using the bins might receive a small reward if he or she is doing well.

Basic Upkeep

Toys come with so many accessories that they can be hard to keep up with. Everything from toy guns to tiny hairbrushes can become separated quickly from their cowboy or Barbie, and trying to figure out what accessory goes with what toy can be maddening. Keep a small tub specifically for these random parts. As you find them around the house, put them into the tub. Once a week, gather your kids around and distribute the pieces. The kids will know which accessory or piece goes with which toy will probably be excited to see that they have reclaimed a piece that they thought was lost.

Use these kinds of systems to teach your kids the value of being organized.

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