How to Declutter Kids' Rooms

While the same basic guidelines for decluttering apply when you declutter kids’ rooms, some additional considerations exist as well. It’s important to involve your children in the process of decluttering their rooms. It will take more time than it would to do it yourself, but the long term benefits outweigh the inconvenience.

Teach Principles of Organization

Before you begin decluttering, briefly explain the process to your children. Children tend to be much more cooperative when they understand what is expected of them. Then, make decluttering a learning experience by teaching basic principles of organization to your children as you work together. In her book, The life-changing magic of tidying up, Japanese organizer Marie Kondo points out that the main reason so many people lack basic organization skills is that they were never taught them. Here are just a few of the many principles of organization you can teach your children in order to give them a head start at becoming an organized person.

Help children begin to understand the importance of caring for things so that they remain in good condition.
Teach children to sort and store items by type so that it's easy to find what you're looking for.
Hold children accountable for putting things away when they are finished with them.
Establish guidelines and systems for maintaining an organized space so that your joint efforts don’t go to waste.
Help children develop a habit of parting with things they no longer want or need.

Talk About Expectations

Decide together what will stay and what will go. Most children, especially children under the age of eight, have a difficult time making such decisions. Their natural tendency toward possessiveness, lack of perspective, and immature reasoning skills all combine to make the task overwhelming to them. Help them look for toys they really don’t play with and won’t miss.
Decide beforehand what guidelines you wish to establish with regards to getting rid of toys. Instead of just telling your kids they need to get rid of some of their toys, discuss with them the reasons for doing so. These might include: freeing up space in kids’ rooms so they have more room to play, decreasing clutter, or donating to charity. Children have a tremendous capacity for compassion. If you’re asking your kids to donate some of their toys to charity, make sure they understand where the toys will go and who will benefit from them (at least in a general sense). They will be much more willing to part with things.
Any toys that are broken or missing key parts automatically go in the trash, along with any actual trash you come across.

The Ongoing Battle Over Trash vs. Treasure

Your kids will undoubtedly try to argue that some toys are not trash simply because they are broken. For instance, my sons never wanted to get rid of the Star Wars figurines with missing heads or limbs. Their argument - they played an important role as victims in intergalactic battles.

My advice is to be reasonable yet firm. If a toy still gets a lot of valid play time despite its apparently diminished state (and it’s not in any way dangerous in its current condition), it’s a keeper. By letting them win the occasional trash vs. treasure debate, you provide yourself with leverage. Pick your battles.

The Process

Gather Supplies

Before you begin the process to declutter kids’ rooms, gather the following:

a trash bag
a box for items you want to donate or give away
a basket or bin for items that belong elsewhere in the house

Decide on a Goal

Determine up front what your goal for the room is. Do you want to tidy up, get rid of excess stuff, create a more organized space, or all of the above? Each of these is a good goal in and of itself, but keep in mind that you and your kids will have the greatest long term success if you work together to establish systems for maintaining an orderly room.

If your goal is to do anything more than just clean up, consider tackling the project in stages. Sort through the closet one day, dresser another day, toys another day, and so forth. Break it down into manageable tasks that will not exceed your child's attention span or your patience.

Sort Items by Type

Sort everything according to type: clothes, shoes, books, toys, etc. Within each category, sort things further as appropriate. With regard to children's toys:

Establish piles – one for dolls, one for action figures, one for art supplies, and so forth.
If a toy comes with multiple parts, group the toy and its attendant parts together.

Be Prepared for Distractions

Asking children to sort through toys is an uphill battle. The temptation to play is just too much for most kids to overcome. They will get distracted from the task at hand.

Be aware of this before you start and establish ground rules at the beginning. The younger children are, the less should be expected of them. They should help you identify things to get rid of. Their participation beyond that will be somewhat dependent upon their attention span. As long as you have their attention, take advantage of it. Once their attention starts to wane, it will be up to you to decide if you keep harping on them to get back to work or just do the sorting on your own. Older children can be bargained with. For instance, if they work steadily to assist you for half an hour, then they are free to play with whatever they like.

A friend of mine once gave me some parenting advice that has stuck with me ever since. She said, the purpose of the task is to strengthen the relationship. If what you’re doing is driving a rift between you and your child, it’s not worth it. Step back and reevaluate.

Clean as You Go

Toys can be germ magnets. It’s a good idea to use this opportunity to do a little sanitizing. Some toys can be washed in a sink full of soapy water and set out to dry. Others can be washed in the top rack of the dishwasher. Still others will need to be wiped down with disinfecting wipes. The kind of cleaning toys receive will depend on how grubby they are, what they are made of, and whether or not they contain electronic elements. One thing to check carefully before submerging toys in water or placing them in the dishwasher is whether the toy has any holes, slits, or openings into which water can go and get trapped. When in doubt, just wipe the toys down with a damp cloth or disinfecting wipe. Cleaning toys is a good task for kids to do, and one they may actually enjoy.

Establish a Storage Plan

Chances are you already have some storage containers in your kids' rooms. Now is the time to determine whether or not you have enough containers, and whether the containers you have are appropriate for your needs. Your main goal should be to find a permanent home for everything. Stuff that doesn't have a home just gets strewn about.

If you don’t have enough containers for everything, stash the overflow in an out-of-the-way corner for a day or two until you can get what you need. Keep in mind that the sooner you can get everything put away, the better. The kids will automatically be drawn to those piles on the floor, and it won’t take long before you are forced to begin anew the effort to declutter your kid’s rooms.

Enjoy the Rewards

Decluttering kids’ rooms can be a challenge. If you need to, do a little every day until you get the job done. Once the job is done, it will require regular maintenance. The parental default is to tell kids to pick up their rooms. This statement rarely results in success. Be specific and break the task into manageable chunks. Instead of saying ‘pick up your room’, say ‘pick up all the Legos®’. Click here for more information on maintaining kids' rooms.

The biggest benefit that comes from the effort to declutter kids’ rooms is the renewed interest kids gain in their toys. Do you feel like your kids are spending too much time watching TV or playing video games? Get them involved in decluttering their rooms, and they’ll rediscover all the options at their disposal. One good decluttering session can lead to countless hours of positive play time!

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