Storage in Your Children's Playroom

by Gillian Markson | More from this Blogger

20 Jun 2006 11:19 AM

When arranging for adequate storage in your children's playroom, it is important that you consider your own needs along with the needs and tendencies of your little ones. Storage, while ideally it makes things quick and simple, can be difficult to work around for some young people. Therefore, you will need both a system and a method that suits your needs as well as the needs of the playroom's most frequent users.

Because children do not innately understand order, they will have a difficult time placing items on shelves or arranging things neatly. They tend to prefer clusters. For example, all of their stuffed animals will likely end up in the same spot, whether they really fit there or not. For this reason, it is important that you make storing items easy.

Begin by purchasing or building a large box. This box can either be open at the top or it can have a lid. Due to safety reasons, it may be best to have a top that is open ended. Nowadays, many safety experts will advise against having a trunk with a heavy lid if your children will be playing with the trunk.

Tell your children that they arte expected to return their toys to the trunk when they are done playing. The trunk can house any toys that you like. Keep in mind that plastic toys and toys that break easily should not be stored in the trunk. However, things like stuffed animals and boxes can go in the trunk.

For the more breakable toys, establish a small shelf for your children on the bottom of a larger shelf. The small shelf will be the children's shelf and they will be in charge of putting their items there. If you establish that the shelf is theirs, your children will take ownership over the shelf and will be proud to put their items there.

Please note: if your children have a large shelf in their playroom, it is important that the shelf is properly secured to the ground. This means that you need to bolt it to the floor and wall so that if your children choose to climb on the shelf, it will not fall on them.

Many families also like to use drawers to help their children arrange their items. Set aside a different drawer for each category of children's toys, such as stuffed animals, building blocks and more. Your child can label or paint the drawer to help him or her remember which is which.

Many families that enjoy crafts also like to set up their craft corner of the children's playroom using large baskets on a shelving system. Each basket will house a different craft-related item, such as markers, crayons or glue. Your children will know where they craft items are and you will be able to store these items somewhat neatly.

Finally, your children may be able to use a closet to store their larger items. If you have a room that used to be a bedroom now set aside as a playroom, the closet can be very helpful. Have them sore all of their play clothes, costumes and large items such as houses and cars in the closet - out of site, out of mom's mind.

Learn more about Gillian Markson

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger