Tips for Decluttering Toys
A few posts back I talked about how I organized the entertainment center. I did a lot of decluttering in the process and I promised I would go over how I declutter toys in our neurodivergent home. These tips might not work for everyone, but they work really well for our family. Let's get started!
Tips for Decluttering Toys | Rotate
Tip number one: rotate your toys. Lots of toys can be overwhelming for kids, especially neurodivergent kids. When you limit the toys you have accessible, the accessible toys are more likely to get played with consistently. Take the toys you aren't going to have out and put them in a bin so they can't be seen. Then rotate them in and take other toys out every few months.
Tips for Decluttering Toys | Visibility
Tip number two: put the toys that are out in clear containers. Being able to visibly see what toys you have will make your kids more likely to play with them because they can see what they have. Having them clearly visible will also make it easier for you to see what you need to rotate in when that time comes.
Tips for Decluttering Toys | Trash the Broken Toys
Tip number three: get rid of the broken toys or the toys with missing pieces like puzzles or games. Chances are you're not going to find those missing pieces, so don't hold onto them. It's not worth it. Trust me!
Tips for Decluttering Toys | Regular Decluttering
Tip number four: this actually kind of goes back to tip number one, but go through your toys regularly. I know I'm personally guilty of just throwing toys back in the bin and leaving them alone. If you go through them regularly, you will be able to have an account of what you have, what has missing pieces, what your kids plays with the most, etc.
Tips for Decluttering Toys | Include Your Kids
Tip number five: include your kids in going through their stuff. One of the things I did recently with my daughter was sort through all of her toys. We sorted her toys into categories of where they would go. The stuff she was going to keep but doesn't play with as often would go into her closet, preferred stuffed animals would go in her bed, toys she would give to her new baby brother went to the nursery and stuff she was willing to donate went into a bin for donations. This was a pretty hard activity for her, I will be honest. However, we talked through the entire process and I made it clear to her we weren't getting rid of anything she really loved and wanted to keep.
Tips for Decluttering Toys | Out of Sight Out of Mind
Tip number six: the out of sight, out of mind concept. Periodically, go through your kids' stuffed animals and toys. Put them away in a bin they can't access and see if they ask for them. I usually wait about a year and see how long it takes her to ask for something. If she doesn't ask for it at all, it gets donated because this means that 1) she didn't care about it or or 2) she doesn't even remember having it. This is actually one of my favorite things to do because it works really, really well, especially at our house. I just keep those toys in a bin in our storage closet she never goes into, and then I empty it out about once a year and donate stuff she has not asked about. If she does ask for it, I go and get it, take it out and I give it to her, and it can stay in her stuff until I notice she's not playing it with it anymore.
These tips have definitely helped in our home. When things are organized, I feeI better and our lives run more smoothly. I hope these tips can help you as much as they've helped us!
Tips for Decluttering Toys | Shop
