A Place For Everything: Its Childs Play
What parent hasn't gone into a son's or daughter's room and wondered, "Where did I go wrong? How could I have created someone who creates such a mess?" At this point it is essential to recognize that not everyone is born organized, just as not everyone is born with a talent for art or mechanics. But anyone can learn the basic principles of organization given sufficient motivation and instruction. These principles will serve as a sound basis for personal growth and development throughout life and will contribute greatly to a more peaceful living environment for the entire family. You can help your child begin to use organizing skills at a very young age by creating an orderly living and playing space. As soon as a child can identify colors, you have a major building block for good organization. Picking up toys can be a game for your toddler when you have colored boxes or shelves where similar toys can be stored. For example, all the Lego blocks can go in the green box and the rest of the blocks in the yellow one, while all books can go on the red shelf and the audiotapes in the blue one. Pictures can be used to help identify what belongs where. Although the child may be unaware of it, you are teaching one of the basic principles of organization: Put all like things together. Spend time with your child sorting through belongings to decide what is to be kept. Be sure you have a good idea of what it is you need to organize. Then browse through closet shops, office supply stores and mail-order catalogs to discover creative ways to store the essentials. All children (as well as adults) are more inclined to put things away when it is readily evident where they should go and convenient to do so. Pegboard, hooks, plastic cubes and bulletin boards make items easily accessible and can be clearly labeled to make putting away an easier task. Let your child help decide on a specific place for each item or group of items. Make that place as accessible as possible. Set up a table or area where unfinished puzzles and building projects can be left out until completion. An older child will need space for doing homework. Conventional closet shelves are often too deep to be conveniently organized. Add more shelving, or use portable shelves and dividers available at hardware stores or closet shops. Games can be returned to shelves easily if they are stacked five or six deep. If your child is a collector, provide boxes for storing various treasures- one for stamps, another for rocks- and when that container is full, help with the weeding out. This is excellent training for the choices children must be able to make as adults. No storage system will work effectively for very long if the containers are not properly labeled, so provide large colorful markers to make labels. Show your child how to arrange the boxes on the shelves or in the closets so that the labels are always visible without moving the boxes. Clothing can be organized to make dressing and putting away clothes less difficult. Again, group all like items together-all shirts in one drawer, pants in another; dresses at one end of the closet, blouses at the other. Use shoeboxes or plastic containers to separate socks and other small items. Be sure the clothes rods are an appropriate height for your child to reach. Treat the child to bright colorful hangers that are easier to use and will improve the appearance of the closet significantly. Large hooks make hanging pajamas, robes and coats much easier too. Simply keeping the lid off the clothes hamper will encourage children to put their dirty clothes inside it, instead of on the floor. A word of warning: There are no ironclad rights or wrongs about organization. We all need to have an environment that suits our individual personalities. Be sensitive to your child's likes and dislikes, and be patient while new habits are being formed. In the meantime, take a second look at you own room. A good model is worth a dozen lectures. Barbara Hemphill is the author of Kiplinger's Taming the Paper Tiger at Work and Taming the Paper Tiger at Home and co-author of Love It or Lose It: Living Clutter-Free Forever. The mission of Hemphill Productivity Institute is to help individuals and organizations create and sustain a productive environment so they can accomplish their work and enjoy their lives. We do this by organizing space, information, and time. We can be reached at 800-427-0237 or at www.ProductiveEnvironment.com
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Children and Mom and Paper
Memorabilia ? Children can create enough artwork for an entire gallery in a few short weeks. The key here is choices; establish a particular place-e.g., basket, drawer, or shelf ? for each child to put artwork. When that space is full, have one-on-one time with Mom and select your "three favorites". This is a lesson in life, which is continually full of choices. Then create a Memorabilia Box for each child where the favorites are kept. Keep the box in a convenient place, with the lid off, so it's easy to add new items. Use the same approach for photographs. A great parent-child activity is "scrap booking" ? have your child help make a family album, or get double prints, and let the children make their own. If you're not into albums, use attractive boxes. If you're on a tight budget you can use shoeboxes. Label the outside of each packet with the contents (e.g., Lee's 5th birthday, Mary's soccer outfit, etc.) with the date. At the end of the year, store your calendar with the photos in case you decide you want to create albums when the children are grown and you need to retrieve more specific dates. The key here is "Less is more." A few great photos are far superior to boxes of unidentified ones! One of the biggest causes of clutter ? and family disagreements -- is paper. Create a filing system for important papers. Create one file for each child for each area. For example, Medical Records ? Mary, St. John's High School ? Tom. Children can begin their own filing systems as soon as they start school. The key to any effective filing system is a File Index. This can be a handwritten list, a word processing document, a spreadsheet, or you can use Taming the Paper Tiger software (see below). A File Index will help you avoid making a file for "Summer Camp" when you already have one for "Camp Wesley." Here's a sample of some other file headings for information that children might like to file: Cartoons I like English Homework Family Information Friends Fun Things to Keep Gift Ideas for me Gift Ideas for others Hairstyles I like Math Homework New Year's Resolutions Phone Numbers/Addresses Recipes I can make Savings Account Scouting Information Summer Camp Information
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Help Your Child Do Better in School
1. Create a personal schedule
Recording everything that must be done on a calendar or "to do" list will help him to keep track of important dates and deadlines. If he keeps it in a visible place he will have no problem acknowledging upcoming events and will be better able to plan how and where to spend his time.
A "to do" list would also help him to prioritize his tasks. When it comes to homework, whatever is most important should be tackled first.
2. Watch the clock
Setting an alarm for the morning is a must. I also recommend setting his clock or watch five minutes ahead since it's always easy to run late. When it comes to something like catching a bus, just five minutes can make a significant difference.
3. Focus
He should train himself to be able to concentrate solely on one specific task. This is much easier in a noise-free environment. No T.V or radio should be on to distract him.
4. Get enough sleep
Lack of sleep is proven to take a toll on us physically. The more sleep we get, the more alert we are. We thus have more energy to handle life's daily tasks. The average adult needs at least six hours of sleep a night and the average child needs at least eight.
5. Stay in shape
Through spending time outdoors or playing sports with friends, he can "blow off some steam" so to speak, as well as re-energize. Encourage him to get outside.
6. Talk through your problems
Being able to share his concerns with you will alleviate the frustration of keeping things bottled up. Sharing feelings often makes them easier to deal with. If you make it clear that you understand him and are willing to help, not only will you contribute to his emotional health but you'll help build an open and honest relationship as well.
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