Why I Got Rid of the Toys

Blogger and mom Denaye Barahona is licensed and experienced as a child and family psychotherapist and behavior consultant. Barahona discusses her decision to pare down on her son's toys in this post, originally featured on Dallas Moms Blog.

Recently I shared why I got rid of my wardrobe. But long before I tackled my closet, I took on the toys. I vowed there would be no more stepping on Legos in the middle of the night and tripping over blocks. Too many toys are a safety hazard and a sanity hazard.

I have to argue that any child would be completely overwhelmed with a selection of toys as lengthy as the Cheesecake Factory Menu. Just like I felt about my wardrobe, I believe maintaining a short "fine-dining" menu of higher quality, carefully chosen toys is a better fit for children. So I knew what I didn't want: toy chaos. What I did want was a tranquil space for my son to play independently. After all, we know kids learn through play. So I pictured his playroom to be like his office. The place where the real work (aka playing) gets done.

We started to learn about a child's "work" when we enrolled Nicolas in a playgroup in our neighborhood. It was at a Montessori school–which we didn't know a thing about. The first week, my husband David took him to the group. David came back from the group with an excited but confused mix of feelings. He explained to me that the classroom felt empty – maybe even a little boring.

David told me everything in the classroom had its place. Each toy in the classroom had its own little basket and a special spot on the shelf. And the rule was that each child should only play with one toy at a time, and put it away when they are done. Groundbreaking, right? What's more, he said that all of the kids were completely engaged in the few toys the room had to offer. There was no mischief-making . . . no one trying to unload the teacher's cupboards, bite their friends, or run out of the room. I was intrigued.

The following week I observed it myself for the first time. After my first observation, I was sure that the school was lacing the Kool-Aid with a special rule-following medication. Either that or it was a cult. I couldn't get over how well the children played independently. They were completely absorbed and occupied in their tasks at hand. I was determined to figure out what the secret was so I could jump on the bandwagon and bring it home.

I started to read a little more on the school's philosophy behind their seemingly minimalist classrooms. I quickly came across a blog post entitled "There's just too much stuff." It resonated with me because, like most of America, we.just.have.too.much.stuff. I found out the answer to my problem was having fewer toys, and picking the right toys. To quote the author:

"The things we surround ourselves with are not always lovely, not always useful or meaningful. In our house, we have closets and a garage full of things we don't really need or use. We have living spaces that are cluttered with toys, books, games, art projects and the like. Often these things have missing or broken pieces…What I will do is be more deliberate about what we really need, what is truly engaging, and what is lovely and pleasing to us. I intend to be more thoughtful in how these things are arranged, displayed and organized. Nothing is stacked or hidden, nothing is in a toy box or in cluttered bins. The children can see the materials, can access them easily, and can put them away with ease."

And with that quote, I was sold. Hook, line, and sinker.

We created our son's office playroom in a way that we hope he will be learning and playing in for years to come. Is it extreme? Yes, absolutely. But we have already seen how wonderful it has been for his play, development, and sanity (heck, mostly our sanity). Here's how we did it.