Decluttering Kids’ Rooms Before Back-to-School
Teach your children stewardship, simplify your home, and know exactly what they need before you shop. Plus, download the FREE PRINTABLE CHECKLIST!! Have fun decluttering your kids’ rooms this season.
Every year before school starts, we spend a day going through every one of our children’s rooms. Sometimes this takes an entire weekend. It honestly just depends on how consistent I was decluttering seasons prior. Let me tell you, we have moved more than 25 times in my children’s lives, and it isn’t always easy to keep up with what we have with us and what is in storage.
We sort through clothes they’ve outgrown, shirts with holes, forgotten toys, broken items, and all the little treasures that somehow collect throughout the year. Although the project can seem overwhelming at first, the end result is always worth it. We end up with a cleaner home, less clutter, and a much easier time preparing for the school year.
Over the years, I realized something…
Every time I finished decluttering, I’d head to the store and immediately forget what each child actually needed. I’d end up buying too much of one thing, forgetting another entirely, or wondering, “Wait…what size shoes is she wearing now?”
This checklist solves so many problems I couldn’t keep in my head, having five children. As we declutter, I write down exactly what each child still has, what needs replacing, and their current clothing and shoe sizes. Now, when I shop, I know exactly what to buy, and I don’t spend money on things we already have, which was a huge problem for me.
Why You Should Include Your Children
As tempting as it is to clean out their rooms while they’re gone, it’s important to involve your children in the process whenever possible. Decluttering isn’t just about organizing a bedroom. It’s teaching them life skills.
When my kids are all grown and out of the house, I want them to consider their roommates, their friends, and eventually their spouses when it comes to being tidy and hospitable. Not only that, but they need to learn how to let things go and be good stewards of what God entrusts to them. Not overindulging or accumulating so much that their homes resemble an episode of Hoarders on A&E.
DOWNLOAD THIS FREE PRINTABLE!!
Children have emotions, too
Because children naturally become attached to their belongings, they will need Help working through the emotions of letting things go. They seem to be naturally sentimental or attached to objects all on their own. Think of the kid who has to take Teddy with them everywhere. Then loses her stuffed bear in the movie theater and cries for weeks (true story, this happened to me)!
Or think about Susie, who is attached to her blanky and carries it all around the house, no matter how dirty it gets. Having these objects as toddlers is totally normal, but we have to help our children realize that possessions are tools to enjoy, not treasures to cling to.
Learning to let things go is good.
My Youngest Reminded Me of Something
This year, my youngest, who is seven, struggled hard to let things go. She didn’t remember the process as the older children did, and everything I was having her let go of felt like a devastating loss.
I’ve done this process so many times with my other children that when their clothes don’t fit anymore, it isn’t difficult to let them go. When their little RC planes break, or they no longer play with Legos, they are not attached to them. My older children understand that we can replace what is actually needed.
But my youngest just simply saw something she loved disappearing.
That reminded me that children often aren’t being difficult; they’re processing loss. Each time she had a meltdown, I had to remind her that we could replace the jammies that had grass stains and holes in the knees.
Sometimes they just need help seeing the bigger picture. Donating clothes that no longer fit and throwing away broken toys creates room for the things our children actually need and use, making our homes easier to care for and enjoy.
Those are lessons that take time to learn.
Let Them Make Some Decisions
One of the best ways to help children become comfortable with decluttering is to involve them in the decision-making.
Ask questions like:
- Which toys do you actually play with?
- Which clothes are your favorites?
- Does this still fit?
- Is this broken?
- Would another child enjoy this more than you do?
Giving children ownership over some of the decisions helps them practice discernment instead of simply feeling like things are being taken away. That doesn’t mean they make every decision. Parents still have to be the parents!
If something is broken beyond repair, stained beyond use, or several sizes too small, those aren’t really decisions; they simply need to go.
But allowing children to choose between similar items or decide which toys they’re finished with helps build healthy habits over time. I often ask my children, “Are we ready to let another boy or girl have a turn with this?” Not only are they learning to let go of things, but they are also learning to be generous and share.
Don’t Give Up Because It’s Hard
Some children will resist every single item. If that’s your child, don’t let the difficulty become the reason you avoid decluttering altogether. This is a teaching opportunity.
You have a few options.
You can remove the items that clearly need to go (outgrown clothing, broken toys, worn-out shoes) and then take your child shopping afterward so they experience that letting go often means replacing genuine needs.
Or, if you have multiple children, let one resistant child keep more than you’d prefer, then take the other children shopping after they finish decluttering. Sometimes seeing siblings receive the items they genuinely needed helps resistant children understand the process for next time.
Every child learns differently. The goal isn’t to force identical responses; it’s to teach them that holding onto everything isn’t healthy. Don’t let overwhelm become permission to avoid the lesson altogether.
Give Yourself Plenty of Time
This isn’t a project to squeeze into thirty minutes before dinner. Depending on how many children you have and how much they’ve accumulated, set aside several hours, or even an entire weekend.
Work one room at a time. I tried to have all my children work at the same time, switching back and forth between rooms, but it became overwhelming and frustrating because one group would be fighting over what was theirs, and the other group would be held up because they couldn’t make decisions on their own. This bottlenecks the entire process, so I recommend one room and one child at a time.
Be An Example to Your Children
Children are always watching us. If we expect them to let go of things they no longer need while we continue filling our own closets, drawers, and garages with items we never use, we’re sending mixed messages.
Let your children see you declutter your own belongings.
Talk through your thought process. Explain why you’re donating a shirt you never wear or getting rid of something that has been sitting unused for years. Show them that stewardship isn’t just something you expect from them; it’s something you practice yourself.
As Christians, we don’t want to become people who are constantly accumulating more simply because we can. Everything we own has been entrusted to us by God, and good stewards regularly evaluate whether they’re caring for what He’s given them well.
Your children may not remember every toy they donated or every shirt they outgrew, but they will remember the habits you modeled. When they see contentment, gratitude, and wise stewardship lived out in your own life, those lessons become much easier for them to embrace and follow themselves.
