Simplifying Play

When my boys were small, I would periodically blitz their room and give it a good old sort. I’d leave out a couple of toys, maybe a long forgotten item and re-introduce it to their play.

I always noticed a difference. I felt differently when entering their room; I could breathe more deeply knowing it was clutter free. I also felt more inclined to stay there and not just shut the door and leave, and more importantly, I could see they were playing differently.

Firstly, the length of play was different. They were happy to independently explore the ‘new’ toy they had for a longer period of time and secondly, the play was richer, deeper and more imaginative.

There have been official studies of a group of children that are given four different toys and then another group are given sixteen different toys. You can probably imagine the outcome, but just to confirm, the group with four different toys played differently. They engaged in longer play with each item, focused for longer and their play was more creative. The other group couldn’t settle on what to play with, seemed more restless, and less focused.

If you are reading this and you have children, consider how your children play. Are they able to settle and really engage in one thing at a time? Or, do they flit from one thing to another, not really sure what to do? I wonder if their environment is helping or hindering that.

Generally as adults, we feel more peaceful when we enter a room that is ordered and calm. There’s no need to physically or mentally tidy, to feel a sense of overwhelm, to feel unsettled, we can therefore focus on the task or person in hand.

It’s not that different for children. Too much choice is overwhelming and not enough physical space, due to an accumulation of toys or other items, ironically hinders play.

Less does equal more.

Let’s consider your home environment. Do you have lots of toys available at one time ? Could you store some away in a loft or attic to rotate them at a later date? What do your children actually love to play with? Could some things be given away to have a new lease of life somewhere else?

Are your children’s bedrooms a place of calm or chaos? What does that feel like at the bedtime routine? Can you find their favourite teddy or book to read or are they lost in an abyss of clutter and disorganisation?

I’m aware I’ve been asking a lot of questions! These questions can help to analyse where we are at and help us realise that , maybe just some simple changes in this area could make a huge difference. We may feel that we are denying our children by removing toys or paring down the rooms they play in, but actually we are helping them to discover how to play differently and in a more enriching way.

We get clues from our children as to what they enjoy playing with and its definitely worth leaning in to these clues when looking at play. For example, if they love dinosaurs, why not set up a little excavation tray outside with sand and a spade and they can become archaeologists! Something simple, but with multiple options for role-play.

When sorting through toys and deciding what to get rid of, it’s worth considering whether the toy encourages ‘open ended play;’ that being lots of different play ideas. Toys with multiple parts, ‘small world’ opportunities (cars, dinosaurs, small people, animals, dolls house etc) different textures and sorting toys; all these offer more than one option to your child, therefore encouraging them to explore more with their play.

Another massive benefit of having less available in one go is the tidying up! If you only get out what you are willing to tidy away, then this can then feel like a more manageable amount to deal with at one time. Days are busy and can carry their different stresses, this can be a way to relieve you of a sense of overwhelm and help you to transition more easily to some rest time when they are in bed.

When faced with organisation, it can be the starting that feels too much. If you would value any help in these areas, I’d love to be a hands-on help and to help to motivate you to make these small changes that can lead to a big difference in your everyday life.

Please get in touch and I’d love to help you on your decluttering journey.