Kids’ bedrooms can quickly become pits of clutter and mess if we don’t stay on top of the cleaning. While it’s important to let them have their own space and for them to use it how they want, this doesn’t mean we should have to navigate a toy minefield every time we step into it!
So, what can we do to keep kids’ bedrooms clean and organised? Well that’s exactly what we’ll look at below, so read on to find out our top tips, the same time may apply to school cleaning as well, you just need to get a little creative with some of the approaches.
Keeping Kids’ Bedrooms Clean and Organised
1. Make Sure Kids are Involved
It’s important that when you do any cleaning or tidying, your kids are involved. Having their help with cleaning will reinforce good practices and set them up for a more successful tidying mindset as they grow.
Make sure cleaning and decluttering jobs are framed as giving them and their belongings attention because this’ll make it much easier to keep them motivated.
2. Start by Decluttering
Ideally, your first step should be to declutter if you think your kids have too much stuff. Doing this before you properly tidy will make this an easier process, simply because there will be fewer things to clean.
Try to let your kid lead the decluttering process: steer them towards specific things but don’t throw something away if they’re adamant it should stay. On the other hand, frame giving things away as a positive. Explain their toys will go to good homes with other children and they should be much happier to donate them.
3. Set Up Smart Storage
Storage is essential in kids’ bedrooms, but it’s equally important to think about how and where it’s set up. For example, vertical storage is an obvious choice, but you must be mindful of whether your child will want to access things when you’re not there. If so, avoid anything that’s too tall or that they could climb on.
Make use of space under the bed – this is perfect for big storage boxes. If you do plan to set up bookshelves or cubby shelves, make sure you anchor them to the wall to prevent any accidents.
4. Rotate Out Toys
This is helpful for younger kids who might not properly understand ownership. Every week or so, swap out boxes of toys to store elsewhere in the house. If you notice your kid isn’t playing with some things as much as others, you can probably get away with donating them to free up some space.
5. Have a Daily Job List
Have a clear tidying list for your kids’ room that happens every day. This is applicable to all ages, although your level of involvement might vary. For example, young toddlers will need a lot of help, whereas teens can probably be left alone.
List the jobs you want done daily, such as putting away toys, making the bed, and so on. You might need a reward system to motivate them, so think up something suitable for them completing the job.
6. Try to Define Zones
If your kids’ room is big enough, subtly define zones where certain activities can take place. For example, a small rug could be defined as the play area, while a table could be where crafts and messy activities happen.
A room without any defined zones has the potential to become messy, whereas having areas for certain things can help keep mess more contained. This should also mean tidying is a bit simpler.
7. Make Sure Everything Has a Home
This is true for any home organisation, but works particularly well with kids. Tell them that toys and clothes have homes and decide where these homes are. Kids are very good at personifying belongings, so this kind of language works really well.
When you come to tidy their room, you can just say, “let’s put everything back in their homes.” This should help your kid to better understand the cleaning process and should reduce your involvement, provided they know where everything goes. Plus, it’ll make decluttering easier because if you run out of homes, you’ll need to get rid of some things!
8. Try to Do Weekly Cleans
If you have the time, spend an hour or so each week properly cleaning things with your kids. This won’t be applicable to teens but is fine for children. Do cleaning jobs that go beyond your daily tidy routine, such as:
- Cleaning under beds
- Sorting out dirty washing
- Tidying up drawers
- Reorganising messy toy boxes
It’s unreasonable to expect their rooms to be spotless, but having a deeper clean once a week will make tidying much more manageable. Again, this is about instilling good habits as much as actually cleaning their bedrooms.
Final Thoughts
Keeping kids’ bedrooms clean mainly comes down to keeping them organised. So, focus on nailing the organisation aspect and actual cleaning jobs should be a breeze. Keep your kids involved in every step so they understand why you’re doing things and so they can take ownership of the process. Hopefully, this’ll result in much tidier bedrooms!
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