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Toy cleanup



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amother
Babyblue


 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 8:37 am
How much can I reasonable expect my 7,6,4,2 yr old to clean up thier messes.
By the time they get on the bus in the morning there are at least 3 overturned bins and random toys scattered all over the playroom.
They’re rushed in the morning and tired in the eve. So during the week it’s my job to clean up. The weekends are a disaster and by shabbos afternoon every toy costume and even the furniture in the playroom is in disarray.
They kids are close in age and there’s lots of overlapping interest so no one is responsible for any specific mess.
At some point on Sunday I give everyone a task and demand a clean up. But after 3 min they’re over it. And would rather do nothing the rest of the day than clean up. Help
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amother
Lime


 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 9:09 am
Following! Following! Following! At wits end
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esther11




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 9:17 am
What I find with my toy-playing kids (5 and 3) is that the best system is to have an organization system! Let me explain.

We used to have all our toys thrown into a couple large toy boxes (aside from the occasional set of blocks or magna tiles in their own containers). The kids would basically empty everything and we had a ton of clean up every night. I did a major overhaul and sorted the toys into an organizer with boxes/sections for different types of toys: balls, kitchen set, doll accessories, mr potato head, puzzles, dr set...

It took some real practice but now my kids know they can take any one box at a time each. If they want another they have to clean up and then can take the next set of toys. In the beginning we had to be very on top of them to teach what goes where and that it was a serious system. BH it worked though and they are doing much better with organization and clean up! They need reminders to clean when needed but they don’t resist 99% of the time.

Also a couple more points:

1) My kids aren’t allowed to pull out toys before school unless they are totally ready for the day. They are also reminded to clean up a few minutes before its time to go.

2) You want to implement a reward system, especially while they get used to the concept of cleaning up after themselves. We give the equivalent of 1-2 chocolate chips for cleaning when they need extra motivation. But obviously do what works for you and your kids!

3) Furniture in dissary meaning the pillows off the couch or furniture moved and flipped? If it’s the latter I would recommend some more supervision for safety. If it’s the former than hopefully by clean up time they can take care of it on their own.

Hope that helps!
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esther11




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 9:18 am
Forgot to add:

4) If every toy has a place the kids learn really quickly where everything belongs and they can clean up more independently.
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amother
Amber


 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 9:29 am
My kids that age clean up the entire playroom by themselves. BUT, we only clean the playroom once a week for shabbos. And I only allow to unpack one type of toy at a time. My kids usually follow this rule. But dolls and doll accessories I always let even if something else is unpacked. The playroom is the kids department. I keep the toys very organized, with everything in its separate bin or drawer, the kids know where everything belongs and packing away is a breeze. They pack away the toys, I pack away the bins into the closet & wash the floor.
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amother
Brown


 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 9:31 am
Following!!!
I’ve organized my playroom so many times, small bins for specific toys, very clear & easy to clean. Put some toys that were hard to clean away, & only bring out occasionally.
Nothing seems to work though. I bribe, I threat, I help them. My kids are very creative & the one bin at a time never worked for us. They don’t use toys in their conventional way, and use things combined for wtvr they’re playing.
I.e. a spaceship to the moon, somehow out of couch pillows, blankets, tied to jump ropes, with toy trucks, wood blocks & other random stuff all in a sophisticated jumble! Keeps them entertained for hours bh. But the clean up is big struggle for us...
Usually a combination of bribes (treats) & threats (gonna throw some toys out if too hard to clean... or no story time till it’s done etc.) plus lots of help from me or my dh and it gets done... but I wish I could get them to feel responsible on their own. Sigh.


Last edited by amother on Wed, Mar 13 2019, 12:38 am; edited 1 time in total
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flowerpower




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 9:41 am
What I do on Shabbos is give each kid a job to do- put away different bin of toys and once it’s all clean we have a shabbos party.

I would not let them take out a few bins before school. Then you are left with a mess before the day even starts. Let them choose one bin and play together. Then ten minutes before the bus comes have them clean it up.

Regarding costumes- that makes the biggest mess of all. I keep the costume bins in a different closet and take them out occasionally.
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Zeleze




 
 
    
 

Post Sun, Mar 03 2019, 10:53 am
I get all the kids together and ask each to pick up 10 things each (with my estimate that 10 will be it all) and sometimes I pitch in to help them which makes it more easy and fun for them
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 2:20 am
BKIND wrote:
Following!!!
I’ve organized my playroom so many times, small bins for specific toys, very clear & easy to clean. Put some toys that were hard to clean away, & only bring out occasionally.
Nothing seems to work though. I bribe, I threat, I help them. My kids are very creative & the one bin at a time never worked for us. They don’t use toys in their conventional way, and use things combined for wtvr they’re playing.
I.e. a spaceship to the moon, somehow out of couch pillows, blankets, tied to jump ropes, with toy trucks, wood blocks & other random stuff all in a sophisticated jumble! Keeps them entertained for hours bh. But the clean up is big struggle for us...
Usually a combination of bribes (treats) & threats (gonna throw some toys out if too hard to clean... or no story time till it’s done etc.) plus lots of help from me or my dh and it gets done... but I wish I could get them to feel responsible on their own. Sigh.


This.
My kids new activity making homes. They shlep blankets, pillows,rugs & what not from bedrooms to dining room on shabbos or living/playroom.
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amother
Burgundy


 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 3:46 am
amother wrote:
How much can I reasonable expect my 7,6,4,2 yr old to clean up thier messes.
By the time they get on the bus in the morning there are at least 3 overturned bins and random toys scattered all over the playroom.
They’re rushed in the morning and tired in the eve. So during the week it’s my job to clean up. The weekends are a disaster and by shabbos afternoon every toy costume and even the furniture in the playroom is in disarray.
They kids are close in age and there’s lots of overlapping interest so no one is responsible for any specific mess.
At some point on Sunday I give everyone a task and demand a clean up. But after 3 min they’re over it. And would rather do nothing the rest of the day than clean up. Help


Off topic, but I am amazed at how many of you have a playroom! Are these standard in houses now? We have a six-bedroom house but no playroom!
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amother
Jade


 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 6:46 am
amother wrote:
Off topic, but I am amazed at how many of you have a playroom! Are these standard in houses now? We have a six-bedroom house but no playroom!


Well, I have a 5 bedroom house with a playroom..

From what I understand, houses built by a Jewish builder will often have a playroom and study- even if those rooms are very small.
Otherwise, other homes might consider their basements to be the playroom.
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amother
Burgundy


 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 6:50 am
amother wrote:
Well, I have a 5 bedroom house with a playroom..

From what I understand, houses built by a Jewish builder will often have a playroom and study- even if those rooms are very small.
Otherwise, other homes might consider their basements to be the playroom.


Our house was built so long ago, no idea if the builder was Jewish! And we don’t have a basement. We will just have to wait for the older kids to leave and make one of their rooms a playroom/study/guest room! 🤣
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amother
Amber


 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 7:01 am
We don't have an official playroom, one of the bedrooms not in use is the playroom.
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dankbar




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 10:14 am
If you have 6 bedrooms unless you have 18 kids one could be a playroom.
People will combine 3 kids per room to sleep on bunk bed & pullout in order to have one room free for a playroom even in small apartments, that's what I see a lot.
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amother
Burgundy


 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 10:31 am
dankbar wrote:
If you have 6 bedrooms unless you have 18 kids one could be a playroom.
People will combine 3 kids per room to sleep on bunk bed & pullout in order to have one room free for a playroom even in small apartments, that's what I see a lot.


Ages/genders/personal family circumstances don’t allow this unfortunately, so yes, we are happy to sacrifice a playroom for this necessity.
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mha3484




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 10:34 am
I keep all toys that are a pain to clean on high shelves. My oldest keeps some legos and knex in his room and its his responsibility to clean them up or he looses pieces. I stay out for my mental health lol. If my littler kids want to play before school they can play with the big toys like trucks, magna tiles, mega blocks. Honestly they dont have a ton of time once they have eaten breakfast and gotten dressed.

We have an unfinished basement which one day will be a playroom when I have the money to fix it but for now they either play in their rooms or in the living room.
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oneofakind




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Mar 04 2019, 5:54 pm
Whatever system you use, the more often you clean up, the less mess there will be to clean. Looking at entire week of mess is very overwhelming. Also, when it's a doable clean up and part of routine and followed by a rewarding activity, it's much easier to get cooperation.
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