Bedroom Organising

[CountDuckula]

First post on mumsnet so if I get anything in the wrong place/put anything the wrong way sorry.

I've 3 children. The younger two DD2 (13) and ds1 (10) have always had trouble with bedroom organisation. There have been questions about dyspraxia for both of them. DS should be going for assessment soon. DD1 has been considered by the school as being 'borderline' dyslexic. I want her secondary school to have her assessed properly with this.

At present DD2 is struggling at school and at home. The school we are sorting, but the home is proving to be difficult. Her room is a tip. And we can't find a method for her to organise it. We've tried lists, me tidying with her, talking about what could help together, but nothing seems to work. I'm not happy with her room, but I can shut the door. She however is really unhappy and it's starting to bother her that she can't do this. DS's room is as bad but at the moment he's at the 'don't care stage'.

I don't want to tidy for them as I don't have the time and more importantly its a lifeskill they will both need.

Has anyone got any ideas or websites which could help?

Thanks

What about the Flylady concept? So a bit at a time, very short time and just focus on one task like empty the bin or take plates to kitchen!

www.flylady.net/

My DD with ASD/LD has similar difficulties as she finds it hard to plan or think ahead. I;m afraid we do an awful lot for her but, have tried to keep her belongings/'stuff' to a minimum & have provided drawers/boxes/baskets so that most things have a home. We've found that she responds well to routines so that most activities can be broken down e.g. get clothes/bag ready for school the night before, dirty laundry in basket or rules about always putting one activity away before starting the next one. An occupational therapist suggested we have laminated sheets with reminders of the order for some activities as it can lessen the anxiety of not being able to plan whilst giving them the feeling of independence.
I like the Flylady concept too - short burst, no guilt!

DD2 has big problems with this. We do the one step at a time, bit by bit, slowly, if her room gets into a tip.

My rule is I will never do her rooom alone, she must be there doing it with me if it's something she has huge trouble with. Most stuff she can do on her own, if i supervise her she will even do it well!

I go into her room to have a poke around about once every 3 weeks, sometimes she has left notes for me, or i might discover she's been taking other people's things and hiding them in her room!!

The best way, IMO, is to remove lots of stuff from their room, and keep possessions in it to the bare minimum. Most books and toys if they're that young can be found another home, I only keep a few of her clothes in her room, a couple of books. What is in there is in colourful boxes, or on a shelf. Never enough to get into a complete tip, quite easy to tidy up if she trashes it in a rage. When tidying up, pick one task, do it, move on etc. If there is a clear structure and order to it, it becomes manageable for her as well as me!