The most important things to
consider when designing a room for a child are organization, and
stimulation. Trying to keep a child's room neat and organized is an almost
impossible task and you should take any advantage you can to help with
this process. By designing the room in such a way that messes are automatically
funneled into their proper place, you can avoid extra work. On the other
hand, you don't want your child living in a blank, stark space, with little
or no stimulation. This room is the child's home, and it will influence
their minds as they grow. It should be interesting enough to keep
the child's mind active and imaginative.
One important point to note is
that you should always get the help of your child when designing
a space for them. Children are often difficult to interpret; even they
themselves don't always understand why they behave one way or another.
If you make an assumption about their tastes, you may be wrong, which
can lead to feelings getting hurt. Working with the child should
be a bonding experience. By listening to their ideas, you will learn more
about them, and create a better relationship between you.
You should start by building
a base of organization into the room. In this way, no matter how you
decorate, the room will be naturally set up to avoid clutter. If you
organize first, your decoration can fit easily into the structure you
create. You also will want to get the organization done first, otherwise
you and the child may become tired by the end and not put as much effort
into that.
Organization is about making
it as easy as possible for a child to keep a room clean by themselves.
A great way to do this is to divide the child's room and possessions
into different categories. These should be very broad categories
that will be easy for your kid to remember. These can consist of action
figures, books, games, electronics, or cards. It really depends on
your child's possessions. Try and stay below 5 to 7 categories, as
more then that will confuse the child
Buying two or three large plastic
contains in bright colors, and then labeling them with big letters,
will make certain that the child knows where the different toys belong.
This will make it much easier for them to maintain cleanliness themselves.
You can explain to them that if they just keep putting the toys back
in these two or three bins, they will have an easier time finding
them when they want to play again. It won’t click at first,
but over time the idea can sink in. This is a great way to encourage
organizational habits in the child at a young age.
Certain items wont fit easily
into any categories. These may be special dolls, favorite toys, or
fragile items. These can be placed on shelves or in special drawers.
This makes the child appreciate these items more, and helps to keep
them safe.
In order to make a child more
excited about organizing the room, you can turn it into a game. Race
with the child, and see who can get all of the toys in the bins first.
Clap excitedly every time they get a toy right, and help them when
they get a toy wrong. If you play the game with them occasionally,
it may become second nature to them to simply put things back in their
bins.
Once you have the structure in
place, you can get together with your child and decorate. Use your
imagination, and your child's feed back, to decide how best to
fill the area. Make sure to listen carefully to the child, and incorporate
as many of their ideas into the process as you can. You will need
to turn down a few that will cause problems, but for the most part it
should be their decision how to go forward.
One way to decorate is to cover
your bins in bright wrapping paper. This can make it seem like they
are opening a gift every time they go for their toys. You can also
use construction paper to line the bins, and let the children create
their own decoration by drawing on it. Every few months you can take
the paper down, save it, and put more up for them to draw on.
Children's toys are great decorations
too. You can set up mock scenes of battles with toy soldiers, or set
dolls up around a tea party. Model ships can be hung from the ceiling
using thin wire. Stuffed animals can be hidden in a mock jungle, built
using construction paper and wooden craft sticks.
Themes are a way to
tie the look of the child's room together. A theme can consist of any
interest that a child has, space, mermaids, pirates, or even mutant mongooses.
Use construction paper to cut out figures or scenes, and tape them to
the wall using double sided tape. Styrofoam balls can become planets
hanging from ceiling, and glass beads can be bubbles under the water.
Talk to your child about their interests, then wander around a craft
store and explore the different materials you can use to create the rooms
feel.
The most important thing is that
the child feels like they belong in the room. Keeping the room organized
will keep down the clutter, and help keep the child’s thinking
clear. Decorating the room based on the child’s imagination
will inspire them. Using both of these tactics will help to positively
influence your child in their developmental years.
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