A “Drop Zone” Can Help Your Family Stay More Organized at Home

Keeping kids organized is a herculean effort during the best of times, but trying to keep their spaces clutter-free and clean during a quarantine that involves both working from home and virtual learning presents undeniable organizational challenges for parents.

Luckily, Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin—the dynamic duo also known as The Home Edit, Instagram’s beloved home organizers—shared their easy, doable tip for helping to keep clutter at bay in shared spaces.

When the pair recently appeared on “TODAY” to promote their Netflix series “Get Organized with The Home Edit,” they dished about on how to keep home classrooms and offices well-organized, even if those two spaces are now one and the same. Sharing work space with family at the kitchen table or in the living room means you don’t know where your stuff begins and your children’s stuff ends. So Shearer and Teplin recommend creating work-from-home and school-from-home “drop zones”—like a designated cart, bin, or basket for each person’s stuff that can be rolled out or brought in as needed.

The Home Edit team explained that this will keep things contained while making it easier for younger kids to stash their stuff at the end of the day. “When the kids are done playing with something, even if they don’t know how to put it back in the exact space that we know it needs to be in, at least they can just put it in the one designated basket and then you can go ahead and resort it or recategorize it with them later, ” Shearer said.

When every person has their own dedicated drop zone or space, there’s no fighting over stolen or missing school supplies, toys, or other goodies, helping to eliminate at least one headache for parents. These zones can exist along walls or in corners so that they’re out of the way and easier to keep things a bit more tidy.

The Home Edit’s clear acrylic cart is on back order, but there are plenty of options, including this upgraded version of Michael’s popular rolling art cart (below).

As a more general tip, Shearer and Teplin recommend labeling and color-coding everything (yep, it’s their specialty), from books to toys and even errant objects like doll shoes and pretend food.

If you haven’t checked it out yet “Get Organized with The Home Edit” is both pure entertainment and a great way to kickstart your next organization project.

This post originally ran on Apartment Therapy. See it there: A “Drop Zone” Can Help Your Family Stay More Organized at Home, According to Experts