I have been open for 5 years and may have posted something on the same topic as this but I'm not positive! I am always changing my set-up and trying to find a "better" way to organize. I sort the ponies, dinosaurs, blocks, etc in seperate totes but I would like to know how other providers organize their toys. If you would like to post pictures, that would be very helpful as well, but not necessary. I'm hoping to find a way to organize the toys that I am happy with, something that I can stick with!

Reply

I reorganize every couple of weeks. Mine are all sorted into small clear totes and then put on low shelves with the big toys they go with. I also rotate every couple of months. I move the big toys like the kitchen or playhouse from one side of the room to the other. Just changing them around makes the kids think it's something new. The only thing I keep in the same spot is the art stuff, coloring, painting and the books.

Reply

I don't really separate the toys much. I have shelves with totes for things like moon sand, playdoh, music instruments, blocks, manipulative, etc. but the general toys all go in 1 big toy box. Tools sit with the tool kids toolbench and food and dishes with the kids kitchen set. Crafts go in the closet on another shelving unit in totes as well sorted of course. My daycare area is not big enough to have centers otherwise I would have it all divided but for now everything is just on shelving units. Outdoor toys are always outside in their own set up. I dream of the day I can have a daycare room all for daycare items only. Sorry I can't be of more help.

Reply

I'm working on reorganizing all our toys and rearranging our playroom; it's been a several months' process as I try things and they don't work and I have to try again. What seems like it will work best is once I get everything into similar plastic boxes, labeled with what belongs in it and pictures (well, symbols) indicating how many children can play with that toy at a given moment. I also try to have plenty of play space right by the shelves where things are stored because my kiddos are too young to really "get" picking up a box, carrying it to a different spot, and playing with it. They just drag it off the shelf and play with it right there.

Toy organization is something I struggle with a lot though and I always need new ideas.

Reply

When I label I try to use the actual box the items came in. I cut out the name/picture and tape it to the front of the box that way the readers can read what's in it but the toddlers can see what exactly is in it as well. Some of my totes are transparent and some are harder to see through so I find that this helps.

Reply

I use clear drawers.

Every toy has a home and at clean up, the children know that if things aren't put in the right drawer, I tip it out and they start over. It was hard at first....but I was tired of toys just stuffed anywhere. Legos mixed in with blocks etc.... Now I don't even have to supervise clean up and the kids let any new ones know exactly where things go! Our toys stay perfectly organized and are easy to see and get to.

Reply

what ages do you have? My 3.5 yo can clean up fairly well, but everyone else just looks at me blankly when I try to get them to help clean up (they are 2yr 11 mos, 2 yr 2 mos, 2 yr 0 mos and 18 mos). If I even try to get the others to pick up a toy and put it "right here, where I'm pointing" they tend to pick it up and wander off with it.

Reply

My place is not large enough for centers either. I have a home daycare, and that is just as it says, a home that children come to and learn. I use my basement so it's basically all daycare materials in the rooms. The main room I use is not super large but I do try to move the toys around and it seems so much more fun to them. Thanks for the ideas

Reply

I bare boned it down with my toys! I bought some orchard baskets (the kind you put apples in) and wicker baskets and put toys in them. I have about 6 baskets of toys on a 3 shelf bookshelf. Then we have a kitchen set and a basket of hard books that I get at the library. In the baskets I have duplo blocks, cars, farm set, food, animals, little ponies, and weeblo people. I also have a basket of wooden blocks that sets on top of a crate I turned sideways and we park some cars in there-bus, dump truck, etc. Then I took a wicker laundry basket and put the stuffed animals in them.

The first of the month I switch out toys from my garage and rearrange the room. Since doing all this it is soooo easy to keep clean. We pick a basket and put all the toys that belong in that basket, then move on to the next one. In a matter of minutes everything is picked up. They actually do most of the picking up because it isn't that hard with so few toys. Mine are the ages of 22 months up to 3.

Reply

We are licensed for 16 children. We have a few 2 year olds, but the majority are between 3 and 4.

I have found that the absolute, very best way to have the kids clean up is to find one child doing an OK job at cleaning up and praise them. It never fails that all the others then want to please me too and the place gets cleaned up super fast.

Gone are the days are saying "let's clean up" etc. (like pulling teeth)
I just say "Good job Sara!" or "John...you are such a great helper!" and the mess is gone!

Reply

I have my shelf I got from Target where I sort some toys out for easy access... Then I just have 2 matching green big plastic boxes where one has just all stuffed animals and the other has all trucks and boy type toys. I have all toddlers in my daycare, so I just have age appropriate type toys. It works for me

toys.jpg

trucks.jpg

stuffed.jpg

Reply

I have pictures of my set up on my website. Feel free to take a look. I keep toys to a minimum so that they actually get played with. I rotate toys, puzzles, art supplies, sensory box stuff every month or more.

Link for inside set up pictures: http://kidkair.webs.com/apps/photos/...bumid=11357557

Reply

One thing I saw once in a post was a picture of a dramatic play area with a kitchen set and beside it along the wall was a three-drawer plastic white w/clear drawers to put the clothes/dolls in one, the kitchen cooking items in another, etc. That was very neat imo.

I'm not a huge fan of the buckets on wooden peg shelves, but really like the appropriate sized baskets on regular shelves look better.

Reply

Hi! This helped me out when I was sorting the toys that we use. It's simple and easy to do. You can use pictures as labels and you can use this to encourage the kids to pick up and sort the toys. Hope this helps. http://www.nichedesignsinc.com/simpl...age-solutions/

Reply

Try asking them to find a type of toy instead of "that toy right there" and then prompt them with leading questions.

Bobby, please go find blocks for the bucket.
Suzy, please go find books today for the book rail.
Sally, you can find the cars today.
Bobby, I see more blocks by the dollhouse. Can you find them?
Suzy, I know that Sally was reading in the hallway. Are there books out there?
Sally, did you look under the playpen for cars?

My 15 month olds pick up with these types of instructions and by the time they're 2.5 they are little playroom picking up machines. I have to prompt alot but they catch on fairly quickly.

Reply

Here are some pics I took this weekend of the playroom

Reply

Reply

https://www.daycare.com/forum/album....&pictureid=593

https://www.daycare.com/forum/album.php?albumid=72
since I can't see the images!

Reply

heh that's what I do now. This post is over a year old; interesting looking at the ages I had...I'm not sure who all they were!

Reply

Why do old posts keep popping up?? <sigh>

Reply

the site is well indexed on google and so people stumble onto the older posts and come comment without looking at the date. it happens :P Usually it's an unregistered user or a really really new user (like with one post...the one on the old thread) that brings up the old one.

Reply