Identify areas where kids can keep their books, toys or stationery and allow them to take ownership of the space.
By Kajal Jain
Home is pivotal for any family and where we look forward to coming back at the end of the day. Growing nuclear families demand specific areas for each member of family, while in joint families, the demand was more for common areas with fewer private zones.
A play area for children is a vital space at home, whether it’s a room, corner or even an area that gives a sense of ownership and belonging to little ones. While every space has its function, a children’s room is actually a common room which accommodate varied activities for healthy interaction.
Here are few tips to enhance these spaces to make them more interactive:
IDENTIFY THE ZONE
First, do identify the zone where kids can keep their stuff, books, toys or even stationery. Whether it’s a room or a corner, big or small, it’s important to identify and mark this zone in the home layout. As a parent, if you start giving importance to a child’s space, it will also reflect positively, in them respecting your needs even more.
PLAN IN ADVANCE & PLAN TOGETHER
Planning for this in advance gives you the opportunity to design or provide for essentials like storage, cabinet, wall art or even decor. Plan it, but don’t fuss over it to keep it sacrosanct, as one has to accommodate for the growing needs of a child and make it adaptable for her/his needs. Having this discussion together will also help you interact in a healthy fashion.
LET THEM TAKE THE LEAD
It’s important for the child to be involved in the process of planning her/his room. Let them take the lead sometimes. It helps them to cultivate the sense of ownership and belonging for their space and make it more user-friendly. This helps in reinstating your confidence in a child, further strengthening parent-child relationship.
Also Read: Get kids interested in decorating their rooms!
MATERIALS
While deciding on material, it’s crucial that one plan for the long term and use materials which are natural, non-synthetic and chemical-free. Right from a toddler to teenage, a kid’s room may be used for multiple purposes for longer durations, hence use of natural materials would help it age and sustain properly.
COLOUR PALLETE
There are no set rules for the colours to be used for children’s room décor, but keeping it minimal and subtle always helps the room to evolve better. One can provide for an accent wall with murals or scribble space, kids’ artworks or even their pictures to develop a sense of belonging.
DESIGN AND DECOR
Overall elements required to design a child’s room could be different, depending on their age, but the basic thumb rule is to keep usability and practicality in mind. Overdone and over accessorised designs often do not work in the long run. Give enough room for tag-boards, scribble-boards, or even a blackboard to add value to the space.
FURNITURE
Furniture design and planning should be realistic and practical. Furniture, such as cupboards, drawers, bunks should be extremely user-friendly, accessible and ergonomic. One should account for ample storage of different sizes, to accommodate all their stuff like toys, books, stationery and clothes. This also helps in organising stuff as per the need, age or season.
While we may think more about designing and planning a kid’s room, actually a basic thought should be to create comfortable zones. Let a child’s imagination, skill or talent take over their room, to make the space interactive, happy and full of positive vibes.
(The writer is Founder & Director, Studio MESO.)
Source: Read Full Article