Last updated on March 6th, 2024
Here, I explain why toy rotation is important, how often to rotate toys, and how many toys should be out at once.
What exactly is a toy rotation?
I’m sure you’ve read from countless parenting resources telling you that you should start a toy rotation. I agree! But what exactly does that mean?
A toy rotation, put simply, is when you put the vast majority of your children’s toys away (in storage) and pull just several toys out for play at any given time.
Think of it like all of your kid’s toys all taking a turn being out for play.
After a certain amount of time, you put the ones in play back into storage, and pull different toys out for play. Wash, rinse, repeat.
Okay, sounds easy, right? But I’m sure that left you with a lot of questions.
What is the benefit to setting up a toy rotation?
As if you need MORE tasks on your plate, right?
I know that it can feel overwhelming adding ‘toy rotation’ to your already long to do list, but I do think it is pretty important.
Regularly rotating your kid’s toys helps keep them stay engaged longer, which builds their attention span and fosters meaningful play (i.e. learning). This promotes independent play.
There are countless other benefits to a toy rotation too, such as easier and faster clean up times which results in less overall clutter in the home.
Less toys = less mess. Simple as that.
Less toys leads to less overwhelm
When there are less options out for play, your child will feel less overwhelmed choosing what to play with.
Think about how it feels walking into Hobby Lobby. Your eyes are immediately drawn to about 5 million different areas. ‘Look over there, a Christmas sale! But wait – throw pillows! Hold on, I see wall art!’
It’s overwhelming. You likely never give one specific area your full attention, because so many other areas are distracting you.
That is what it feels like for kids in a cluttered playroom. They might see lots of cool toys, but they don’t know what to play with first. You might notice they ping-pong between different toys – never having meaningful playtime with one specific toy – because of all of the distraction.
So how many toys should be kept out for play?
That’s going to be dependent on your home’s set-up and personal preference or beliefs… but I think a good place to start is this:
- For households with one child: 6 toys per kid per play space.
- For households with multiple children: 2-3 toys per kid per play space.
For households with one child, this would look like 6 toys in the living room and 6 toys in their bedroom (or playroom).
For households with two children, this would look like 3 toys for the baby and 3 toys for the toddler in the living room and ditto for the playroom. (Let’s be honest, the baby will inevitably play with the toddler’s toys and vice versa).
Like anything, use trial and error. Start with this rule of thumb, but if you’re finding that 6 toys is a bit much or too few, tweak it to fit your own parenting beliefs. After all, you know your kids best.
What do I mean by these numbers?
I don’t count “one” as EXACTLY one specific item. That sounds confusing. Let me show you a picture and explain a little.
In this picture, I’d count the handful of Little People and the Little People playground as “one” toy. Just like I’d count the small basket of toy vehicles as “one” toy. The small basket of plastic animal figurines would be “one” toy for my count as well.
So I’m not necessarily counting a single small truck as “one”, but instead, a small basket of trucks as “one”.
In this example picture, I’ve got the top shelf of Little People (1), the Elmo ABC Puzzle (2), the basket of animal figurines (3) the basket of vehicles (4), the Piggy Bank toy (5), and the Magnatiles (6).
This is what I would consider six toys on a play shelf for my one year old and three year old.
Disclaimer: The ABCs of Motherhood is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Read more about these links in my disclosure policy.How often should you rotate kid’s toys?
This question comes up allllll the time in the parenting world.
Instead of trying (and failing) to follow a strict by-the-calendar exact schedule for toy rotation, try reading the mood of the house.
Let me explain.
Over the years, I’ve noticed that it’s time for a toy rotation when:
- the kids are fighting with each other more
- they are asking for more screen time than usual
- they seem bored all the time
- it’s been over 2 weeks since the last rotation
- mom is losing her temper more often
- your independent player won’t play alone lately aka quiet time no longer exists
- toys are being ignored (it’s like they don’t even see them)
- your household just got some new toys (birthday, holiday, random trip to target (IYKYK)
Flexibility is best when it comes to toy rotation
Life with kids is always going to be a bit unpredictable and your capacity to take things on will drastically change depending on what season of life you are in.
This is why I’ve never been a fan of daily toy rotations. Some families use a different toy bin for every day of the week – and that’s fine if that works for them – but that schedule can be difficult to sustain long term for most people.
That MIGHT have worked when I had one child (lets be honest, it probably wouldn’t have worked even then) but it DEFINITELY does not work when caring for two children. I’m twice as busy. There are days that just getting food on the table is an accomplishment, let alone a full toy rotation.
So if you happen to get busy and swept up in the day to day craziness and forget to rotate toys for a longer stretch – it’s no big deal! Just rotate them when life is a little less hectic. No guilt.
It’s best to be flexible when it comes to parenting, because life will always and forever be unpredictable with kids. That’s why I try to follow these simple guidelines for toy rotation – totally doable for life with kids.
Let me know if you have any questions regarding toy rotation in your house! I’m happy to help whenever I can.
Leave a Reply