Am I expecting too much? Room tidy

[Creativemode]

8 year old boy, room is a tip, he's got loads of nice toys and he doesn't look after them.

For example
Nintendo ds games left lying around everywhere, under the bed, on the floor, down the back of drawers.
Lids constantly left of felts
Bits of games going missing and dumped around or jumbled up

So many times I've gone in and cleaned and tidied the whole room. Everything has got a place so literally all he has to do is put things back. I've tidied it with him and shown him where to put things.

I send him to do a 10 minute tidy each day but what I find by the end of the week is he's all the dirty socks thrown in toy boxes, put back in drawers, under the bed. Felts just thrown in drawers and toy boxes, bits of games hidden in drawers.

I've tried everything, I've made lists like, washing in basket, felts in pencil case, Lego in tub.

People have bought him nice things like a card game and I found some of the cards drawn on and ripped up.

I've even threatened just to throw it all in the bin and he'd actually rather throw it all away than tidy it up.

Any ideas? Is it typical of his age.

No console until what? He starts looking after things?

If he keeps his room tidy all week he gets it at the weekend.

Is that your tidying system? Maybe he doesn't want to organize his toys that way? Suggest he comes up with his own system?

I'm not sure redsky I've only tried to make it really easy for him to keep tidy.

His system is all over the floor.

DD (10) is also dreadful.

She has started (on occasion) to put dirty clothes either directly into the main hamper or into a small basket I have in her room (she's in the attic). But they're still often on the floor.

Toys - everywhere! Although she does accept my hard and fast rule of needing a pathway clear from her bed to the door at night (in case of emergencies, but also just for middle of the night bathroom trips in the dark). And sometimes herself and her BFF do tidy up after big games with everything out.

She has only just started to show any initiative when it comes to chores - she's just started coming home alone from school 20 minutes before I am due home, and has taken it upon herself to set the table for dinner when she gets in. I am delighted with that. Very occasionally she will otherwise sweep a floor, help with laundry or do some washing up (leaving floods everywhere usually), and I can sometimes get her assistance with cooking (she makes a nice penne arrabiata when it suits her!).

But mostly, it's like pulling teeth to get her to do anything at all....

He sounds like mine. We have a performance every time I tell him to go and sort his stuff out, but he does seem to be getting better. But it's slooow.

I remember reading on here that a MNetter told her son/daughter that all the gangways/floors must be kept clutter free because they might hurt themselves. Also, in the unlikely but possible event of a fire we all need to be able to exit the house without any trip hazards. That really seemed to sink in for Ds1. Maybe try that?

I think kids are just naturally lazy.
I spent a small fortune doing up my son's bedroom, including new ceiling, window lighting and walls replastered. I then put up shelves everywhere as well as building a desk in the alcove. His bed has two huge drawers for storage and he has a unit with 6 plastic tubs for his lego. I get hugely frustrated that this room which was all done with his needs in mind ends up such a mess every week.

Then again both the kids are at an age where they forget to flush/turn off lights/put clothes in basket.

Warn him once that if you have to pick it up again it will get confiscated. If you have to pick it up again it gets confiscated for 2 weeks. No tidy, no toys.

Well, I spoke to him straight after school. I was perfectly nice about it but I said I'd been in today and found socks in the toy boxes and so on. Threatened him with no console at the weekend.

I said to have a snack and a rest first but it needed sorting out. He went straight up instead and had a go.

It's not perfect but at first glance it looks a bit better than previous attempts. He's promised that he hasn't hidden anything.

I'm going to declutter it myself though and start again.