Disclosure: Although this post is sponsored by Pley, all opinions are my own.
Toy rotation is a great way to keep the toy clutter manageable in your home. It works with young and older kids. Younger kids are less overwhelmed and stressed by making choices. Because they’re less overwhelmed, they’re more comfortable with sharing toys. Older kids, bored with playing with the same toys over and over again, welcome the change.
Smart moms integrate renting toy sets from Pley into their toy rotation. You can introduce younger kids to building with Legos and K’Nex. Older kids will love the opportunity to build the X-Wing Starfighter or Minecraft Micro World. You can keep the toy inventory in your home manageable while expanding your kids to award-winning and educational toys from Pley. Think of Pley as Netflix for your kids!
Clear the Playroom Floor with Toy Rotation
When my 4 kids were really little, I realized that they, and me, were overwhelmed by the amount of toys they had. We had toys in their bedrooms, toys in the living room, and toys in the basement. I knew I had to do something and came up with the idea of rotating toys. I cleaned up the toys and set out a limited number of toys for the kids to play with.
I took the remaining toys and put them into plastic storage totes. I put the totes under the basement stairs. Every few weeks I rotated the toys. It was like Christmas every few weeks!
How to Start Rotating Toys
1. Pull all the toys together.
This works best when the kids are not around. We have all the toys in one area of the basement, making this step super easy. If you have toys in multiple areas, decide what the family toy policy will be. It is much easier on you and the kids if the toys are kept in 1 or 2 locations.
2. Toss broken toys, and junk toys. Set aside for donation toys that don’t get much play time and outgrown toys.
This is why you need to do this without the kids. They love their toys, even the ones they don’t play with. Younger kids will have a harder time than older kids letting go of toys they no longer love. If they’re really struggling, try setting aside the really special toys in a box which goes away for a month. When the month is up, show the toys to your kid and see if they’re ready to let go. Chances are they will be, especially after they seen their first toy rental set arrive from Pley.
Too many Lego bricks in your toy collection? You can trade them into Pley for $5 Pley credit per lb. for up to a 10 lb. maximum. Pley accepts accept mixed bricks and complete toys. They make it easy by providing a free shipping label after you fill out the form on Pley’s site.
3. Organize your family’s toy collection into 3 basic categories: thinking, moving, and pretend toys.
- Thinking – building sets, puzzles, anything using fine motor skills
- Moving – These toys help with gross motor skills like bikes, balls, mini trampolines
- Pretend – You won’t need many of these for older kids. For younger ones, think dress up play like costumes, kitchen sets. Legos, Playmobil, and K’nex can also fall into this category for older kids since they like creating stories while creating pieces. For example, my 3 boys will build tanks and airplanes to act out a World War II battle.
Toy Storage
Always be mindful that kids will mix things up in their play. They don’t see stuff in discrete categories like adults often do. Make it easy for kids to use toys creatively, and easy to clean them up.
Good toy storage is part of the clean up process. For toy rotation, I used the larger plastic storage totes. These were great for the bigger toddler and preschool toys. I would keep the storage totes under our basement stairs for easy access. They were close by, yet not seen on a daily basis by the kids.
For toy storage, I use a variety of plastic storage boxes, depending on the size and nature of the toys. All the toys are stored on plastic shelving I found at Home Depot.
We have one set of shelves dedicated to Lego builds that the kids are not ready to take apart yet. You can use this same idea when storing a rental set from Pley. Label the shelf as “Pley-only” to ensure the kids remember to return the rental set there after they’re done playing. Even though Pley doesn’t charge for missing pieces, you can minimize the loss by keeping the Pley rental set on a try or in a storage box in the designated spot. This is a great teachable moment for your kids about responsibility and sharing!
Getting Started with Pley
Pley is a fun way to implement toy rotation with a new toy showing up on your doorstep every month. For $20 a month, you choose from Pley’s 350 Lego sets, which show up on your doorstep. Keep each as long as you want, and send it back when the kids are done with it. Another set arrives within three days. (Between rentals, each Lego is cleaned with an environmentally safe sanitizer.)
To get started, simply select which package you want to sign up to and start picking your favorite toys to rent. Thanks to Pley’s partnership with Second Chance Toys, every time a new member joins, Pley will donate a toy to underprivileged children through Second Chance Toys!
Earn a free month of Pley Rental
For every friend who signs up using your invitation, you earn a free month of Pley rental. So don’t forget to tell your friends too. Have more questions about Pley? Checkout our FAQ page or contact us.
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I received compensation in exchange for writing this post.
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