Toy Rotation/Organization

After six years of hoarding awesome toys, I came to the realization that my 13'x10' storage room (a spare bedroom) was what shows like "Hoarders: Buried Alive" are made of.  I had toys up to my chin and a tiny 1 foot wide path that went about four feet into the room before it came to a dead end.

The worst part?  Most of these fabulous toys never saw the light of day because I couldn't get AT them.  True story: When cleaning this room I actually found a slipper I had lost (it was suctioned off my foot as I tried to wade through the room) THREE years ago. 

How to organize it?   I have centers at the daycare and every two weeks I like to rotate out the toys.  So I purchased three white shelving units from Walmart for $15 each.  I also purchased nine plastic bins from Menards for $4 each.  I then set about putting one full rotation of toys in each bin. 

I have a folder that has a page for each bin (each bin is numbered) and on each page is a list of the toys in categories.  Here is what one rotation looks like before it is in the bin (if you click the photos they enlarge):

And here it is all packed up:

I should mention that my centers have 'staples', the toys that stay all the time.  Sometimes I rotate those items but mainly they stay the same. These bins just hold the 'bumper crop' of toys that get thrown in the mix every two weeks.

So what is in each bin?  Here are the categories, along with a list of what is in this bin:

Toddler Toy Shelf:
Cow and Chicken Stacker
Small Rain Stick
Cookie Jar
Jumbo Monkeys in a Barrel

Music and Movement:
Metal Bells

Block Area:
Sesame Street Camping Set
Funky Space Men
Wedgits
8 Zoo Animals and 4 Fisher Price People
Zoo Playscene
3 Large Airplanes
Large Farm Truck (not pictured)

Manipulatives:
Green/Red/Yellow 'build-an-animal' set
Nuts and Bolts
Colorful Stacking Head Figurines
Magnetic Dress Up Doll and Accessories
Lacing Cards (not pictured)

Games:
Don't Spill the Beans
Cootie

Puzzles:
7 piece zoo peg board
8 piece summer bugs peg board
8 piece fozzy bear
8 piece eyore
12 piece wheelchair
24 piece clifford
60 piece story book
Where the Wild Things are floor puzzle (not pictured)

Felt Board:
Construction Set

Library:
Mosquito Puppet
Unicorn Puppet
20 soft cover books
10 board books

Science:
4 sound sensory bottles
Big Backyard Magazine: Zebras


So, I have six bins so far like this.  I have nine more bins of my 'best' toys at home that I need to sort through and make three more. This way I have a new bin every two weeks for a total of 18 weeks.

And here is what they look like in storage.  Three bins on the bottom and their coordinating 'big toys' that do not fit in the bins stored up above and to the side.  As you can see I have another shelf to the left just waiting for bins!

I hope this post is helpful. I know it has turned my daycare life around.  Now instead of hoarding toys, when something new comes in, something old goes out. 

Erin