The Ultimate Parent’s Guide To Getting Organized

Are you an organized person but your kids aren’t? Or are you completely disorganized but you don’t want your kids to be? Well, have no fear but the ultimate parent’s guide to getting organized will surely help you create a plan to keep everyone in the house organized! All of these tips mentioned in this post are recommendations that I give to my in-home clients, as well as all my students in my online courses. As a former special education teacher, I have a lot of experience working on life skills, or executive functioning skills, with young kids. And that is what organizing is…life skills! 

The Ultimate Parent’s Guide To Getting Organized

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Create Routines

The very first thing you have to do to get everyone in the family organized is to create routines. Think of routines as a pattern of behavior that you do. So in the morning, my routine is wake up, go downstairs and make my coffee. My kids morning routine is to make their beds, then come downstairs and eat breakfast. These routines help us set up the day to be successful. So setting up a routine that works for you and your family is important. 

Set Expectations

With routines comes expectations. Setting expectations for kids is crucial to teaching them how to organize. To set an expectation, you should figure out what you want the kids to do. Should they put their plate by the sink when they are done eating? Do you want their shoes put away when they come in the house? Should their bed be made every morning? Toys cleaned up every night? Once you decide what you want the kids to do, write down the expectations on paper. Then go through them with the entire family so everyone is clear on what they should expect in each room of the house. I created the Household Expectations Bundle that is perfect for setting expectations throughout the home. Use these printables to guide you to setting expectations along with displaying them.

Create Checklists

The next thing you can do to get your kids organized is to use checklists. There are many types of checklists you can use. My son loves long to do lists and checks them off as he goes about his day. My daughter, on the other hand, enjoys like 3 tasks so we create multiple checklists for her throughout the day. Find whichever way your kids enjoy using checklists and go from here!

Use Timers

I absolutely love using visual timers. These types of timers are what helps kids (and adults) see how long they have on a particular task. Use timers for yourself as well. Set yourself a time when you have to complete a task. When the timer goes off, you can take a break!

My favorite timers: 

Color Code

Another tool parent’s can use to help get kids organized is to color code their school subjects. This is a huge help for me back when I was teaching. I gave each subject a color and the kids would be able to put their papers in that correct colored folder. I would go as far as printing assignments off on that paper so the students could keep things organized. Sometimes it just takes a little visual reminder to show where things should go!

Give Everything A Designated Spot

Another way to get organized is to give everything in your home a designated spot. This helps so much when it comes to keeping everyone organized! Start with an area of the home that everyone uses. The give everything in that area a home. Show everyone where those things belong. This will help keep things tidy as well!

Not sure where to start? Check out these posts:

How To Declutter Your Entire House In One Weekend

Where to Start When Organizing Your Home

Organizing And Decluttering Kids Toys Like A Pro

Label

Finally, don’t forget to label everything! I am a huge believer of over labeling things. That way you never have to think about where something goes. You just find where the label is and put that item there. It legit has helped so many of my clients stay organized because no one is struggling to figure out where something goes. Everything has a place with a label. 

Some of my favorite label tutorials here:

How To Create Custom White Sticker Labels

How To Make Basket Labels With Wooden Tags

Hand-Lettered Font Sticker Labels Pack

Use The Ultimate Parent’s Guide To Getting Organized

Now download this free resource to get the entire family organized. You get printables to set expectations, checklists, and tools to create custom labels!! Seriously The Ultimate Parent’s Guide To Getting Organized is perfect for getting everyone in your family organized for good!

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