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Tame the Toy Monster

Rachel Rainbolt, M.A., CEIM
www.OhanaWellness.com

Toys, toys, toys. The toy monster is one that can overtake your house, life, and sanity, not to mention overwhelm your little one. When your environment is chaotic, so is your internal state of being. Toys can be a great parenting tool. They can provide stimulation for your children in all the right ways, encouraging developmental growth, providing activities for interaction, and occupying their attention so you don’t have to be the dancing monkey every minute of every day, but their potential must be harnessed. Here is everything you need to know to turn your nemesis into your friend.

Rotate Toys: To understand the value of this method you must first understand habituation.  When something is in the same place for a long period of time you no longer see it. It’s like that hideous wallpaper in that apartment you rented. After a few months you didn’t even notice it anymore. But each houseguest just had to remark, “Wow, that wallpaper just about knocks you over, doesn’t it.” You reply, “We’re used to it now.” This is habituation. Toys that are left in the same place for a long period of time (long being relative to a person who has only been alive for a few months or years) become wallpaper. When you rotate your toys, they become brand new with each rotation! The first step in harnessing the power of rotation is to have toys in a few places like the downstairs living area, child’s bedroom, and storage closet, for example. About every month, completely rotate out all of the toys. Take the toys from the storage closet and rotate them in. Move some toys from the living room to the bedroom and vice versa. The idea is to create a brand new play landscape for your little explorer.  

Zone of Proximal Development: Your child’s toys should reflect their zone of proximal development. This means that on your shelves there should be 3 categories of toys: those that are easily mastered by your child, those that are an active challenge but can be accomplished on their own with some effort, and those that are within their reach but require help to master. Toy representatives from all 3 categories should be present in your child’s toy world. This will provide them with confidence, appropriate stimulation and challenge, and motivation for further growth.

Centers: Preschools have been on to this concept for a while now and the reason they use it is because it is good for the child and it works. Children play best when their play world is organized according to the aspect of brain development the play taps into. For example, one shelf can be for puzzle-type toys while a toy chest at the foot of the bed can be for pretend play, containing all of the dress up costumes. A fine motor center of art supplies is great next to their little table in the living room. Simply put, this is organization. But it can go a long way in helping to organize your child and help along play. 

Sorting: Your toy storage must be set up in such a way that your child can clean up. If each toy is put away in its original packaging and filed on the top shelf you are not only making your job more difficult (even if your little one wanted to clean up, which most do, he could not) but you are denying your child the opportunity to develop growth in all the ways cleaning up provides. Cleaning up is a great left-brain growth activity because children must sort. All “guys” go in this box. Blocks go in that box. When you include your child in cleaning up you are sending the message that they are an integral part of your family system; they have an important and valuable role. To send this message, toys must be stored in such a way that the child can clean up. I use open-top fabric-covered boxes on the bottom two shelves of the bookshelf in our living room and their bedrooms.  When they want to play, they pull out the box. When it’s time to clean up we toss everything back in the box and put it back on the shelf. Each activity is contained and easily cleaned up. 

Uniformity: Contrasting visual colors and patterns can be overstimulating. All of those visible toys and packaging with their loud patterns and colors can be stressful. Consider using toy storage that is uniform. The open-top fabric-covered boxes I mentioned above are all blue (toys that are most appropriate for my 4-year-old) or green (toys that are most appropriate for my 1-year-old). This way, when you look at the toy areas, they are not visually overwhelming or stressful. Not to mention, it makes living spaces seem like child-integrated homes and not toy stores.

Labels: Consider labeling your toys with a photo and word. If each activity is stored in a box, simply put a photo of what’s inside along with the word on the front. Not only does this make organization easier (again, you want your child to be able to clean up) but it teaches children pre-reading. They learn what the word “cars” looks like and before long recognize the word even without the picture. 

Clean up: By 1 children can clean up with you. The value and importance of cleaning up was discussed earlier but I want to emphasize that cleaning up should be fun.  If you approach it with distain then your child will do the same. Try singing a clean-up song, give lots of attention during clean up time (eye contact, physical touch, undivided attention), have fun! We literally toss each “guy” back into the box. It’s like basketball. We “zoom” each car into the box while it lies sideways. As your child gets older you can set a timer and see who can pick up the most toys in 30 seconds. When your child is a baby it is much easier to clean up the toys yourself. Involving your 12-month-old takes much longer and a lot more effort but if you invest the time and energy now, they will be cleaning up on their own down the road.  

Harness the potential of toys in your home to provide appropriate and healthy stimulation for intellectual, physical, social, and emotional growth. You will be giving yourself a window into your child’s world of play; a Rosetta Stone for understanding, processing, and learning with your child.  Once that toy monster is tamed you will have not just a house but a family-integrated home that is a sanctuary to babies, children, and adults alike.

Box at top of article is great for heavy toys or toys that you have a lot of.  It has a removable lid, wheels, rounded corners, and it slightly transparent.  This is great because it is not transparent enough to be overstimulating but just enough so that you can see what's inside.  Also, crawlers love to push the boxes around like push toys.  :)  Available at Ikea.
Box at bottom of article is from Target.  The are soft, fabric boxes that fit perfectly on book shelves and completely collapse when not in use.
Perfect and clever stuffed animal storage here.

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