Coloring on newly painted walls, toys and wet swimming suits all over, hair filled with Spaghettios, and an assortment of clean and dirty clothes strewn throughout the house; these are just some of the things you might find in homes with children. Now that summer is in full swing and kids are home more, the disorganization seems even harder to control. In fact, sometimes you may feel as though a tornado struck in the middle of your home. No matter what their age, you want to encourage creativity and allow your children to explore, but it may seem impossible to do without letting the kids take over your home for the next 18 years.

Exploration is essential to healthy growth and helps children develop a lifetime of interest in the world around them. As parents, you CAN encourage curiosity and survive with your sanity (and your home) intact. First, create space where your young children can play without limits. This is space where toys are easily accessible and you rarely need to say “no”. It is their special area where they can create, explore, and play.

Second, to keep the clutter to a minimum and teach responsibility, create a clean up ritual. The ritual may involve a “clean up” song, a speed game, or even a contest to see who can toss the most blocks into its container. As they grow older, the expectation remains the same. They need to be responsible for their belongings. If they don’t pick up after themselves, appropriate consequences should be given.

Most young children have special toys and books that need to be accessible only with your involvement if you want them to last for more than ten minutes. For these items, find a box or storage container that only you can open, or put them in an unreachable place. As opportunities arise, open the box and explore. Your children will like the one-on-one time and the chance to be creative with you. Also, if the items are not available constantly, kids feel like they have a brand new activity each time you open the box. Special toys will be saved for years to come and clutter will be avoided by keeping some objects separate from the rest.

An important way to encourage exploration is to allow yourself to be curious and excited along with your children. With young children, as you go for walks, talk about the trees, cars, animals, leaves, and other objects that you see around you. As you slow down, you will find an abundance of opportunities to explore with your children. The more you talk with your children, the more excitement you share and create. As they grow older, remain interested and excited about their activities. The chaos usually decreases in your home in general, although by adolescence, kids’ bedrooms may turn into a sea of clutter. (This is a topic for another entire article!) It is important that children of all ages understand that their responsibility as part of the family is to take care of their things and their home.

Maintaining some limits while allowing children to explore and create is a difficult task. Children are naturally curious and want to learn all they can about the world around them. Parents need to encourage creativity while teaching children that not everything is theirs for the taking. Finding a balance between creativity and limits in your home is an ongoing process that takes time and needs to be adapted as kids grow.

Remember, the curiosity that can sometimes make life challenging for you also makes parenting exciting and rewarding. You will discover your own comfort level in terms of how much disorder you can tolerate in your home. However, do not let a little clutter stop you from creating with your children. After all, building strong relationships with your children is much more important than how tidy you keep your house!

SUMMARY—ENCOURAGING CREATIVITY WITH HOME INTACT

1. Create space just for kids where they can play with few limits.
2. Create clean-up rituals.
3. Separate special toys.
4. Slow down and be excited with your children.
5. Talk about what is going on around you and question everything.
6. Relax—Relationship is more important than tidiness!

Make sure to take time this month, before school starts again, to schedule weekly family fun nights. Let each child take turns choosing the activity for the evening. Before you know it, they’ll be in school for another year!

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