Organize the ADHD Child's Closet
Reduce Morning Routine Frustration for the Special Needs Child
Jul 18, 2009
The main reason that children with special needs struggle with organization is that they are overwhelmed. There may be too much in the schedule. He may be getting too many instructions at once. The same theory applies to the child's closet. If there is too much there, the simple task of getting ready in the morning will be overwhelming for the child with ADHD.
Remove Unneeded Things to Help Child Focus
The goal is to help the child with special needs to get dressed in the mornings. It is important to eliminate items that are not related to the job. The best way to get rid of unneeded things in a closet is to remove everything. Then evaluate each item before it goes back in. If the clothing is off-season, find a different place to store it. If the item is not clothing, such as shirts, pants, and shoes, find another place for it. This is true even if space is at a minimum.
Perhaps the closet has been home to games. Find a place on a shelf (not in the closet) or in a shallow storage box that can slide under the bed. Perhaps the closet as been home to extra blankets. Again, find another place to store them. Remember that the more things the child with ADHD has to organize, the more difficult the task. In fact, having more things will actually increase the chances of the child being unsuccessful.
Oragnize by Outfit to Reduce Choices for the Special Needs Child
Before things are put back in the closet, arrange them by outfit. The child with attention challenges or the child with developmental delays benefits from fewer choices. A complete outfit (pants and a shirt) can be hung on a single hanger. Color coded hangers will help the child who wants to have choices. For example, anything on a blue hanger will go with anything else on a blue hanger.
Some families find the fold-and-store method to help. In this method, individual outfits are matched for the week. Each outfit is stored in its own stack, with a stack for each day. The large mail-cubby closet organizers work great for this method. Larger units have space for outfits and separate storage for shoes.
Teach the Child with ADHD a Schedule to Maintain the Closet
No matter how much the items in the closet are trimmed down, closet needs ongoing attention. Plan a routine time to redo the whole thing. Closets seem to attract items that don’t really have a place or things that are stashed instead of put in their rightful location.
Another reason to redo the closet is the change of seasons when different kinds of clothing will be in the closet. Remember to store the off-season items elsewhere. Finally, kids tend to grow. As the size changes, so will the needed items in the closet. If nothing else, larger replacements will be needed.
Organizing the closet of the child with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder will help her be more independent in personal care and in having a neat room. She will be more successful in finding needed items. Using an afternoon to clean out and organize is a small sacrifice for the success of the child.
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