Are Your Kids Sharing a Room?
Multiple kids sharing one bedroom? You’d definitely want to keep it clutter-free and set up a system.
Putting two or even three kids in one bedroom can actually work out well.
Without daily fights, skirmishes and ever-flowing, emotionally-charged drama?
Yes…it’s possible!
I’ve seen it work in our large family.
We have two boys and four girls.
They’re all split into three bedrooms now, but at one time they were in two bedrooms.
And my brother has four adorable boys all sharing one, cozy bedroom.
That works for their family!
But let’s talk about your family.
Could it work?
Will it?
Let’s dig into some tips that actually work when it comes it several kids sharing one bedroom!
(Psst! These tips helped our family live in several different locations — even overseas! Our kids beg to share rooms now!)
Tips that Help Kids LOVE Sharing a Bedroom
Kids Sharing Room Tip #1: Create a “kids closet.”
Most people have heard the term “family closet.”
This idea is a spin off that method.
Creating a “kids closet” ensures wiggle room for beds, play areas, and walking space in a bedroom.
Toys and books are also kept in that area.
That’s a kids’ closet!
Think of it: a kids’ bedroom that’s free of clutter.
Only pillows, blankets and sleepy-time stuffed animals are allowed in the bedroom at night.
This was a game-changer for our big family!
RELATED: How to Clean & Organize Your Closet
Kids Sharing Room Tip #2: Give Everyone Their Own Personal Space.
Some families have cute canopies over the kids beds to give them a little bit of privacy — like this bunk bed canopy.
My kids actually made their own DIY version with top sheets!
They’re total DIY nerds…;0)
Kids Sharing Room Tip #3: Assign One Bedtime hour for All Kids.
All of my kids, ages 3-12 go to bed at 8 p.m.
There are instances when I let one or two kids stay up for a reward, but overall my kids do best when they all go to bed simultaneously.
This helps everyone get their need rest — even in a bedroom with several kids!
Kids Sharing Room Tip #4: Choose Neutral Room Decor.
In the past, my daughter’s room was purple and lavender and accented with lots of cute flowers.
My son’s room had firetrucks.
Obviously those decor choices don’t work for a brother/sister shared bedroom.
When kids of different ages and genders share a room, gender neutral themes are your best pick.
Probably my favorite theme to go with is an Americana theme — red, white and blue.
It’s simple to work with and there’s always new patriotic decor to snag!
Kids Sharing Room Tip #5: Assign specific cleaning tasks.
Using generalized statements like “Clean your room” is not very effective when multiple children are sharing one bedroom.
However, if you have a kids’ closet, there’s minimal clean-up needed!
Kids Sharing Room Tip #6: Don’t tuck and run during naps.
During nap-time and bedtime, it’s typically much more effective for a parent to stay in the bedroom with the kids for 15-20 minutes.
This keeps kids in their beds and guards against kids fussing, tattling, or bugging other kids.
Try it.
Fifteen or twenty minutes is a small price to pay for less chaos, less fussing, and more peace!
Kids Sharing Room Tip #7: Make the room a quiet zone.
Use outdoor space for running, jumping, and LOUD noises.
For bedrooms, allow reading, homework, crafts, and quiet games to lessen daily stress for kids.
Noisier activities can happen in the living room or kitchen. Give kids a quiet place to relax!
Kids Sharing Room Tip #6: Be patient.
Give your kids time to adjust to sharing a room.
It can take up to two months to finally make sharing rooms work.
Try to stay calm and expect a few bumps in the road. :)
Have You Successfully Had Multiple Kids Share A Bedroom?
What sharing methods worked for you?
What tips could you share with our readers? Join our Facebook group and let’s chat about it!
Great idea on assigning different jobs for cleaning the room! I have been trying to figure out what to do about that. I also have been staying in the room for nap and bedtime for 15-20 minutes since they started sharing because if I don’t I am constantly running back upstairs to quiet them or lay one back down it is just so much easier staying in there for those few minutes. Thanks for the idea.
I love the idea of assigning different chores in the room (another post topic, perhaps? :) Cleaning together without arguing…) :)
great post, as always.
Yeah, that would be a good post idea.; ;0)
Our oldest three share a room, and like yours, they love it and have grown closer because of it. We don’t have enough space for a family closet yet, so they have to share a dresser. I’ve used Ikea skubb organizational bins to make sure that all of their clothes actually fit into their assigned drawers. (I blogged about it with pictures here: http://www.everythingtosomeone.com/2013/10/21/organizing-kids-clothes/) Otherwise, it sounds like our methods are pretty similar to yours!
My daughters had separate rooms but they were always sneaking into the others to sleep so I decided they can share a room and have the other room for toys. It has not been working so well. They fight and make huge messes and no one wants to clean without saying the other isn’t doing anything. I love these tips and will start using them immediately. Thank you for posting this and saving my sanity!
You’re so welcome! Let me know if it helps!
Do you have a recommended age for sharing rooms? I have two girls, 1 & 3, and I would love for them to share a bedroom so I can make the other a playroom (our house is very small). I wonder if they are two young to share a room though, would it cause more issues with sleep than it is worth? Any thoughts?
I would also love to hear thoughts on this. We’re downsizing homes and will be rooming our son and daughter together. Right now aged 3 and 8 months. Should be interesting…
My daughters (2.8yrs and 7 months) have been room sharing for the past 6 weeks. So far, so good. Most nights they go to bed at the same time. My eldest was in the habit of talking to her bed toys for a good hour before she would go to sleep but as soon as the baby went into her room she stopped this and goes to sleep much quicker. She has adjusted really well to sharing her room and I hope it continues to work this well :).
Our oldest 2 are 16 months apart, sharing a room since #2 was born. They are never too young to share a room, and imo, the younger, the better, so they get used to it! We now have 3 girls sharing a room (ages 11, 10, and 8), and our 5yo son is about to get a roommate. Glad he’s excited! :-P
Got any tips on room sharing where one kid recently was moved from a crib to toddler bed? My kids have room shared over a year but my youngest decided a crib could not confind her and climbed out. Not going well at all.