Techniques for Turning
Messy Rooms Into Skill Builders

"Clean your room!" It’s the battle cry of millions of parents. Children of all ages seem to be natural born experts at creating a mess and chaos. So what do you do when a toddler’s stuffed animals and building blocks or a teen’s CDs and books begin to take over your home? Some parents try nagging. Some just give up and clean up after children themselves. The most successful parents, however, will try to teach organizational skills to their children at a young age. A toddler who learns responsibility will be better able to cope with the "putting away" rules of kindergarten. As the child matures, he will be learning organizational skills that will improve work habits and help him be more successful in school and life. Here is a plan to get started.

• Reduce clutter and unnecessary items to make day-to-day cleaning and maintenance easier. Kids can’t stay organized when the closet is crammed, the drawers are stuffed and playthings cover each square inch of carpet.
• Design the room with the child’s needs in mind. Lower clothing rods and invest in child-sized hangers for younger children. Look for closet organizer systems. Use floor-level open containers to hold toys, open plastic baskets to store socks and underwear and specialty organizers for magazines, comic books, video games, CDs and cassette tapes.
• Use storage containers to sort and organize toys, particularly those with tiny parts. In addition, containers help parents control the number of toys out at any one time. For example, a statement such as, "sure, you can play with the train set, just as soon as the cars go back into their home" is more effective when the child knows where items belong.

Container Tips

• Items smaller than a ping-pong ball, such as game parts or doll accessories, should be stored in a plastic zipper-top storage bag.
• Items about the size of a baseball should be stored with other items about the same size in plastic shoe boxes, covered cans or plastic bins.
• Larger items such as stuffed animals can go in cardboard boxes or plastic baskets.
• Build maintenance routine into the family’s day. "Morning pickup" straightens the comforter, returns the pillow to the bed and gets yesterday’s clothing to the laundry hamper. "Evening pickup" precedes dressing for bed and involves putting away the day’s toys. As children get older, design a chart system to help remind them of tasks to do daily and weekly. Teens need a calendar and file box to organize project and due dates.

Organization is a skill that can be learned. The sooner you begin teaching your children, the easier it will be for them.