Less is More! Tips on Toy Rotations

WRITTEN BY ZARA DEMERIS, PRIMARY SCHOOL TEACHER AND MUMMA BEHIND @zaras_play_tribe

Melbourne, Australia

A picture of our playroom. @zaras_play_tribe

What is a toy rotation?

Toy rotation is exactly that, it is rotating toys. Moving toys out of children’s sight for a period of time then bringing them back. It sounds simple and it is. Move unused toys out of your little ones space and put it somewhere that they will not see it, for at least a few weeks – if not longer!

How do I do it? 

1.     Gather all the toys from your child’s play space.

2.     Make group piles. You can sort them into groups such as games, arts and crafts, building, cars, books, imaginative play, stuffed animals etc.

3.     Now choose a couple of things from each category and put it on display. The rest – goes away! If you are worried because it doesn’t look like much, give this article a read. Less is more!

4.     When putting the ‘rest’ away put it somewhere out of sight. You don’t want your little ones to be able to see it or have access to it.

5.     Decide on a rotation schedule. How often will you rotate the toys? I usually rotate every 10 – 14 days. You might like to do it weekly, fortnightly, monthly or just when your little one gets bored!

6.     When you come to the end of a rotation cycle, simple rinse and repeat! Of course you can keep out the favourite toys but put the ones that have been ignored away and bring back something else.

That’s it!

You do not need fancy toys. You do not need the latest and greatest. You just need to be mindful about which toys and how many you are giving them access to.

Why should I rotate toys?

I have found, when we started rotating toys Aidan and Evie are now less likely to become over-whelmed and over-stimulated. Even better than that, their attention span is longer and the depth of their play has increased (read a blog post from a parent’s experience with minimizing toys here). They don’t have access to many toys so they play with the toys they have to their greatest capacity.

Each rotation is like a new set of toys, most of the time there is nothing new in a rotation but for them it feels new and so exciting!