This document provides tips for setting up a kid's bedroom as they grow out of the nursery stage. It recommends that the bed be easy to access from both sides to make nighttime changes easier. Drawers and cubby storage are suggested for clothes and toys to keep items organized and accessible for the child. A comfy chair and lamp are also recommended for bedtime stories. Curtains are said to help set day and night routines.

1. Setting Up A Kid’s Bedroom

2. When we’re expecting a new baby, we
often spend a lot of time planning out the
nursery and even decorating it – especially
for a first baby.

4. However, as you’ve probably noticed by
now, they grow up so fast and the things
that suited the needs of a baby probably
don’t suit the needs of a preschool child as
well.

5. And if you’re like most parents, life was
probably a bit too hectic through the
toddler years to give much thought to
room design and layout in your child’s
bedroom, and the room probably just
evolved around your child.

6. However, as the weather changes and we
go into a new season that’s likely to bring
a bit of rain along, this can be a good time
of year to re-evaluate how you organise
your home, and one room – a child’s
bedroom – is a good project that isn’t too
overwhelming.

7. Of course, if you have moved house
recently or are just about to, you probably
have the opportunity to think about where
your child is at now and what he or she
needs.

8. So let’s dive on in and get started…

9. The bed is the most important part of the
bedroom for obvious reasons.

10. It’s so much easier to get out of bed and go
to the loo in the middle of the night if you
don’t have to climb over high sides.

11. A lot of preschool children still wet the
bed at night – they say 1 in 500 children
don’t outgrow it until their teens – so
position the bed so you can get to both
sides reasonably easily to tuck sheets and
blankets in.

12. Even with overnight nappies, you will still
be changing sheets more frequently than
otherwise, so you may as well make this
chore easier.

13. Clothes storage.

14. One of the self-care things we encourage
through Montessori education is getting
dressed.

15. This means that you need to provide some
easy-access storage for your child so he or
she can choose clothes quickly and easily
in the mornings without scrambling
around with high rails in wardrobes or
high shelves.

16. While children are small, the clothes they
need can fit easily into the drawers in one
of these dressers, with little need for any
other storage space.

17. Put good clothes that you don’t want worn
daily on hangers in the wardrobe.

18. Toy storage

19. Don’t go for the traditional toybox. These
get so muddled and disorganised, and they
can be a bit of a hazard with that lid
coming down on small fingers.

20. Go for something involving pigeonholes
or cubbyholes with lots of smallish
compartments that can fit one set of toys
in each compartment. Stacking boxes also
work.

21. A place to sit.

22. Where else are you going to sit for the
bedtime story? Try a comfy chair or
maybe a blanket box that stores things
that aren’t in everyday use.

23. A lamp.

24. Having the lighting low in the evening
helps soothe children and get them ready
for sleep. Place the lamp by the chair to
get good lighting for bedtime stories.

25. Curtains

26. A must, as rooms need to be dimly lit at
night for good sleep.

27. Opening the curtains in the morning and
closing them at night make a sort of ritual
pattern to mark the start and end of the
day.

28. www.fridayschildmontessori.com