{"id":15790,"date":"2022-12-13T16:07:32","date_gmt":"2022-12-13T16:07:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/parent-corner\/?p=1470"},"modified":"2023-09-28T11:26:34","modified_gmt":"2023-09-28T15:26:34","slug":"holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/","title":{"rendered":"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s that time\u00ad again\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u2013 the holiday season! While you\u2019re breaking out the holiday decorations, winter coats, and holiday cookbooks, you\u2019re probably noticing you have a lot more stuff than you thought\u00ad\u00ad\u2013 especially your kids\u2019 toys lying around the house. With an influx of gifts coming in the next few weeks, it\u2019s wise to do a little purge to make room. Here are 6 ways to tidy up before the presents arrive!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n

    Donate, donate, donate!<\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    It\u2019s the season of giving, after all! This is a great teaching moment for young kids. Children often have a difficult time knowing when it\u2019s time to let something go\u00ad\u2013 even a toy they haven\u2019t touched all year long. Research the organizations you\u2019re donating to with your child and show them how their toy will make another so happy this holiday season. Remind them more toys are coming to make them happy too!<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

      \n
    1. \n

      Let your child have a say in what goes<\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Getting rid of toys, no matter how necessary it is, feels like a big deal to kids. Instead of telling them what needs to go, ask them to select three toys they don\u2019t need to give to an underprivileged child in their community. Once they\u2019ve made that selection, if you think there\u2019s more, ask them about specific toys you haven\u2019t seen them play with in a while. That way, it will feel as though the decision is theirs, hopefully softening the blow as a result. Don\u2019t forget to ask them if they have any broken toys lying around too- those have to go!<\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

        \n
      1. \n

        Go through your winter coats<\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Kids grow fast, so new clothes for every school year and season are always top-of-mind. But when was the last time you did a good ol\u2019 fashioned coat cleanout? Many families struggle to stay warm in the winter, so those coats your kids have outgrown, or ones that you don\u2019t wear anymore, would be of great use to those families in your community. Find your nearest coat drop and make some room in the closet!<\/p>\n

         <\/p>\n

          \n
        1. \n

          Buy some bins and organizers<\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          We know, shopping absolutely dominates the month of December, and you\u2019d rather not spend any more money. However, whether it\u2019s a playroom or your child\u2019s room that\u2019s overwhelmed with stuff, there\u2019s a good chance there needs to be some additional storage to accommodate all of it.<\/p>\n

           <\/p>\n

            \n
          1. \n

            Turn cleaning into a game<\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

            Straightening up during the holidays can be difficult, so you\u2019ll want some extra hands. No kid wants to clean, so why not turn it into a game? Instead of musical chairs, play a game of musical statues (also known as Museum)! Play some music and have everyone clean while the music is on. Pause it at a random moment, and everyone must stop exactly where they are! Anyone still moving has to take on an additional smaller chore, like wiping down the kitchen counter.<\/p>\n

             <\/p>\n

              \n
            1. \n

              Implement the toy carousel method<\/h4>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

              The theory is easy: one toy in, one toy out. It\u2019s hard to predict how many toys will be making their way to your house this holiday season but do your best to estimate: donate one toy for every member of the family that will be giving your child a present, like grandparents, aunt and uncles, etc… This will keep clutter to a minimum- at the very least, keep it under control!<\/p>\n

               <\/p>\n

              Places to donate toys:<\/h4>\n

               <\/p>\n

              Toys for Tots<\/a><\/p>\n

               <\/p>\n

              Cradles to Crayons<\/a><\/p>\n

               <\/p>\n

              Second Chance Toys<\/a><\/p>\n

               <\/p>\n

              For more, visit Donation Town<\/a> to find organizations near you!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              It\u2019s that time\u00ad again\u00ad\u00ad\u00ad\u2013 the holiday season! While you\u2019re breaking out the holiday decorations, winter coats, and holiday cookbooks, you\u2019re probably noticing you have a lot more stuff than you thought\u00ad\u00ad\u2013 especially your kids\u2019 toys lying around the house. With an influx of gifts coming in the next few weeks, it\u2019s wise to do a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15813,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[4207,4214],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHoliday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys - TeacherLists Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"There's an influx of toys coming for the holidays! Here's how you can tidy up this season and do some good at the same time.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There's an influx of toys coming for the holidays! Here's how you can tidy up this season and do some good at the same time.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"TeacherLists Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/teacherlists\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-12-13T16:07:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-09-28T15:26:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/teacherlists-blog-default-families-fullsize.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"406\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"236\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@teacherlists\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@teacherlists\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b01e1b7b36b8814b9bd2a6cea239abd5\"},\"headline\":\"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-12-13T16:07:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-09-28T15:26:34+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/\"},\"wordCount\":617,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Families\",\"Holidays at Home\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#respond\"]}],\"copyrightYear\":\"2022\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/\",\"name\":\"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys - TeacherLists Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2022-12-13T16:07:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-09-28T15:26:34+00:00\",\"description\":\"There's an influx of toys coming for the holidays! Here's how you can tidy up this season and do some good at the same time.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"TeacherLists Blog\",\"description\":\"The School Supply List Solution\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"TeacherLists\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/TL_logo_250x144.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/TL_logo_250x144.png\",\"width\":250,\"height\":144,\"caption\":\"TeacherLists\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/teacherlists\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/showcase\/33288341\/admin\/\",\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/teacherlists\/\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCeS_Xas-Uq5i_-RqFnSEfag\/videos\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/teacherlists\/\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/teacherlists\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b01e1b7b36b8814b9bd2a6cea239abd5\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/989305091fb14292ee84bc5a14693d4f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/989305091fb14292ee84bc5a14693d4f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/author\/admin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys - TeacherLists Blog","description":"There's an influx of toys coming for the holidays! Here's how you can tidy up this season and do some good at the same time.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys","og_description":"There's an influx of toys coming for the holidays! Here's how you can tidy up this season and do some good at the same time.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/","og_site_name":"TeacherLists Blog","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/teacherlists\/","article_published_time":"2022-12-13T16:07:32+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-09-28T15:26:34+00:00","og_image":[{"width":406,"height":236,"url":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/teacherlists-blog-default-families-fullsize.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@teacherlists","twitter_site":"@teacherlists","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b01e1b7b36b8814b9bd2a6cea239abd5"},"headline":"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys","datePublished":"2022-12-13T16:07:32+00:00","dateModified":"2023-09-28T15:26:34+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/"},"wordCount":617,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization"},"articleSection":["Families","Holidays at Home"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#respond"]}],"copyrightYear":"2022","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/","url":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/","name":"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys - TeacherLists Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2022-12-13T16:07:32+00:00","dateModified":"2023-09-28T15:26:34+00:00","description":"There's an influx of toys coming for the holidays! Here's how you can tidy up this season and do some good at the same time.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/holiday-cleanup-making-room-for-more-toys\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Holiday Cleanup: Making Room for More Toys"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/","name":"TeacherLists Blog","description":"The School Supply List Solution","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"TeacherLists","url":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/TL_logo_250x144.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/TL_logo_250x144.png","width":250,"height":144,"caption":"TeacherLists"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/teacherlists\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/showcase\/33288341\/admin\/","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/teacherlists\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCeS_Xas-Uq5i_-RqFnSEfag\/videos","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/teacherlists\/","https:\/\/twitter.com\/teacherlists"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/b01e1b7b36b8814b9bd2a6cea239abd5","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/989305091fb14292ee84bc5a14693d4f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/989305091fb14292ee84bc5a14693d4f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"url":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/author\/admin\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15790"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15790"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15790\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15960,"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15790\/revisions\/15960"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15813"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15790"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15790"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.teacherlists.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15790"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}