If your child's room looks like the military did nuclear bomb testing in it, you're not alone. But don't despair, there is a way to burrow under the mounds of clothes, toys and garbage to find the beautiful and clean room that's waiting. Storage bins, buckets and other small and inexpensive holders are great for getting things sorted out.



The approach you take in cleaning up your child's room will, of course, depend on his or her age. If you have a very small child, pretty much anything goes. Older children should be involved in the process, but if you've allowed the room to get out of control, you need to help, too. This is especially important if your youngster doesn't understand basic organizing principles. Teenagers should be guided along the way, but should do the bulk of the work themselves.

Now, to get started, breathe. Pick a spot in the house where items can be stored temporarily. If your child's helping, let him know where things need to go for the time being. Jump in and start by removing everything in the room but the furniture.

Follow these steps, and the process should be relatively painless:

* As you remove all the toys, clothes and so on, don't forget items in dresser drawers and so on. If your child is helping, make sure you and she go through everything.

* Set aside a spot for keeper toys, clothes and so on. Put worn out clothes, toys, that year-old slice of cake that was hiding under the bed and so on in the trash. If an older child is involved, let him make the decisions on toys that need to go, but do make it clear anything that's broken or missing lots of parts really needs to be weeded out.

* Designate a box or bag for charity. Put clothes she's outgrown into it along with any functional toys she won't use again.

* With everything cleaned out of the room, go through the "keeper" pile and sort it. If you're dealing with a girl, sort stuffed animals, Barbie type toys, other toy items and so on. Also sort out clothes that still fit and so on.

After you have the room completely cleaned out and the items sorted, it's time to employ some storage bins, buckets and shelves. Closet floor space generally is wasted in a child's room since clothes don't hang down very far. And even in a teen's room, there generally is a lot of wasted space. This is the ideal location for some storage bins or buckets. An empty wall in the main room, too, could benefit from a drawer system or bucket toy box. You can find these in multi-colors, solid pinks, blues or so on for young children. Older kids might prefer solid dark colors or something more "mature."

Designate storage boxes and bins for specific toys. Set drawers in their dresser for specific kinds of clothing, i.e., sock drawer, shirts and so on. With that done, have the child help you put things away if she's older, or do it yourself if she's not.

A storage bin system is a great way to get a child's room straightened out and organized. By setting specific bins and drawers for certain kinds of toys and items, you'll help make it easier for your child to keep the room clean and also find toys when he wants them.