Advocacy in Action: Organize Your Child with Special Needs - Part One

Organization is a huge problem for many children with special needs. Poor organizational skills hurt children's performance at school and cause distress at home.

This two-part series will help parents get their children organized, and make things a bit easier at home and school.

HOME - PART ONE

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Start organizing with these two steps:

Declutter
Make a place for everything

Declutter

Declutter children's rooms by getting rid of anything that they have outgrown, no longer use, or is broken. This includes clothes, toys, footwear, books, etc.

Warning

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Some children are hoarders and don't like to throw or give anything away. In addition, some children develop strong attachments to toys or other objects. Often, children get upset if one of their toys is given away.

If possible, talk to them about items you want to give or throw away. Some parents get rid of toys when their children are at school or outside of the house. You know your children the best. You must decide the best way to deal with items that are broken or no longer needed.

Make a place for everything

After decluttering, ensure that there is a place for everything - dresser and closet for clothes, shelves for toys, bookcase, desk, desk tidy, etc.

Here are some items to place in your children's rooms to help them get organized as well as some ideas for storage:

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Wall or desk calendar
Alarm clock
Laundry basket or hamper
Pictures of their room when clean and organized
Underbed storage boxes
Baskets
Wall shelves
Bookcase
Desk or work area
Files, binders or boxes for school paperwork
Labels for all drawers, boxes and containers
Coat hooks for behind doors and/or on walls
Cork board or other notice board for schedules, checklists, photos, etc.
Canvas or plastic shoe holders for dolls, stuffed animals, art supplies, etc.
Hobby or craft caddies to store small items such as Nintendo games, Lego pieces, loom bands, barrettes and hair supplies, paints and brushes, etc.

Remember you have to train your children to be organized. What might seem obvious to you may not be obvious to your children.

Involve your children in this organizational process as much as possible. It will teach them organizational skills and make your life easier if they know where their things are stored.

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Space can be an issue in children’s bedrooms, so be creative at making more usable space. Look for usable space both under and over furniture if needed. Here are some ideas:

Clear plastic drawers on rollers can fit under beds
Hooks on the back of the bedroom door can act as more closet space
Use a plastic or cloth shoe holder hung on the back of the door or closet to keep small toys, socks or shoes in.
Put hooks on the inside of your child's closet door or on walls
Mount shelves and cubes on the walls for storage
Clear containers or baskets on shelves store a variety of items

Find a place for your children to put their coats, hats, school bags, boots, etc. when they come into the house.

Label everything!

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Label everything! Label the outside of each storage container with its contents. Since visual cues are more effective for a lot of children with special needs, put both the word and a picture on the label. Cut pictures out of catalogs or magazines for the visual clues or print them from the internet. (Cars, Lego, dolls, arts and crafts etc.)

Make sure your children have laundry baskets or hampers in their rooms to put dirty clothes in.

Label the drawers of their dressers using pictures and words. (Socks, underwear, tops etc.)

In your children's wardrobes, hang similar things next to each other-tops all together, trousers together etc. to make it easier for your children to find their clothes.

Establish a routine for home

Put charts in your children's rooms showing their daily routines. The chart entries should use words and pictures. For example:

Sample Morning Routine

From TheTripBit.com

Sample After School Routine

From TheTripBit.com

A white board or magnetic calendar is also helpful. Note activities and appointments on the calendar/whiteboard so your children know what to expect each day.

The second part of this series will look at organizing your children for school. Click here for part two.