The refrain “clean your room!” has undoubtedly been heard in your home. The problem is that your child’s room may not have been organized well in the first place. Use these handy tips to make sure your little one has the tools they need to keep their room neat and tidy. Remember, a little work now will go a long way in keeping your child’s room clean year-round.

1. Include your child in organization efforts

This is probably the most important piece of advice. Your child should learn how to keep their spaces neat and organized, rather than have you do it for them. An investment now in teaching your child how to stay organized will pay dividends in the future as they take over the task of keeping their room organized themselves.

2. Store unneeded items

Children tend to have a lot of seasonal clothes and toys. It will be impossible to keep your child’s room organized if it’s bursting at the seams with out-of-season items.

During the summer, store things like sweatshirts and winter bedding in the garage or laundry room. Swap out these items for the shorts and bathing suits when the weather turns cold.

3. Use storage bins

Storage bins are essential for storing toys and other knick-knacks your child will inevitably accumulate. Organize your child’s toys by type, with each box designated for a certain type of toy. This will help keep things organized while teaching your child some basic organizational skills.

4. Establish a tidying routine

Rather than waiting until it appears as if a natural disaster has hit your child’s room, try to keep it organized on an ongoing basis. This best way to do this is to establish a routine or checklist that your child must complete on a daily or weekly basis. For example, instruct your child to make sure all their toys are away every night before bed, and have them do a more thorough tidying on Sunday evenings.

5. Store out-of-date toys elsewhere

Children’s taste in toys tends to evolve quickly. Inevitably, toys will fall out of favour as your children age. Remove these toys from your child’s room to save space. You can store these toys elsewhere and break them out in the event your little one is feeling nostalgic.

6. Don’t be afraid to get rid of stuff!

Children grow constantly and their tastes change. Don’t be afraid to get rid of clothes your kids have grown out of and toys they no longer play with. Keep in mind that there are families in need who could make great use of these items your little one no longer uses.

It’s never too early to instill good cleaning and organization habits in your child. Their room is a great starting point – and these tips will help get you there. As well, Donating their used toys and clothing to other children is a great opportunity to instill in them the value of kindness. Make organizing your child’s room an enlightening and useful experience and you’ll be glad you did!