Keep it tidy - Organizing Ideas - Organizing

Tweens and teens
1 Consider purchasing a laptop computer for teens. It will take up minimal space and travel easily to the kitchen table when kids need help with homework.
2 Buy a two-drawer file cabinet or a desk with built-in file storage to give teens a place to keep homework, research and personal papers. Help your preteen set up a system with appropriate categories. Click here for tips on setting up a user-friendly filing system.
3 Add a tall bookcase (bolt it to the wall) for textbooks, novels and magazines. Combo entertainment/bookshelf units are a good use of space where a TV, stereo, CDs and DVDs coexist with book collections.

STORAGE IDEAS
1 Keep some toys in a plastic bin in a storage room and rotate them monthly with toys currently in use.
2 Find the right container for the job – sturdy and durable. Don't fill it so it's too heavy for a child to carry.
3 Label containers with pictures or words that identify the contents.
4 A portable cleaning caddy is great for storing craft supplies; carts work on a larger scale.
5 Rolling containers that fit under a bed are ideal for toys or clothes.
6 Use magazine holders to store comic-book collections.

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PLAN OF ATTACK
Involve your children in the reorganizing of their space to give them a sense of ownership that will – hopefully – encourage them to keep their rooms tidy.

Edit
1 Weed out clothes that don't fit; store them for younger siblings or give them away (turn those that are beyond hope into rags). Separate what's left into seasons, then store off-season clothes elsewhere in the house.
2 Give away unused toys – children find it easier to part with older toys after birthdays and Christmas.
3 Go through your child's artwork and projects together and choose favourites to save.

Reorganize
1 Divide the bedroom into areas of activity and furnish each with adequate, accessible storage.
2 Separate clothes for the closet (shirts/ blouses, dress clothes, pants, dresses) from those for the dresser (T-shirts, PJs, socks, underwear, sweatpants, sweatshirts).
3 Organize closet clothes by category, such as formal and casual clothes; organize dresser clothes by type (long-sleeved shirts, T-shirts, shorts).
4 Install a flexible closet organizing system – one that can easily be adjusted as your child grows.
5 Create a keepsake/ memory box (a cardboard office storage box or plastic storage container will work) or binder for storing your child's favourite artwork, projects and papers.