Ask Amy: My Kid Loses Everything!

Tired of buying new everything when your kid inevitably misplaces it? It's natural for kids to be a little disorganized, but if your kid is losing things left and right, there are some simple steps you can take.

A member of our Facebook group asked: 

Any suggestions for the kid who loses everything? My son is 9. He lost three sweatshirts in the two months he was in in-person school, a tennis racquet at tennis camp, baseball glove at baseball practice, shin guards at soccer camp… and don’t even get me started on water bottles! 

The “lost and found” turned up one of the many things he has lost, but that is it. He swears each time that he put the things in his bag. Unless, there is a sweaty shin guard thief, this obviously is untrue. 

We’ve tried charts and check lists. We’ve tried making him earn the replacement items, but nothing seems to stop the constant misplacing of items. HELP!

For the truly forgetful kids, the oft-cited "natural consequences"– if he doesn't have his shin guards, he won't be able to play, and he'll sure remember next time!– rarely work. Your child will feel chagrined, but be just as likely to forget the next time.

In this episode Amy suggests what has worked in her household, like

• making reminders unmissable (put the reminder ON the doorknob, not hanging above it)
• labeling everything that costs more than the label would (Amy uses oliverslabels.com)
• use list-making apps and model using them yourself (Amy uses Workflowy)

Kids do well if they can. Don’t give up on the checklists and the reminders if they don’t work right away. Keep your support system consistent– and non-shaming– and eventually your child will check for those shin guards before he leaves the field. 

Here are some resources worth looking into for kids who are a little disorganized:

• Check out Carolyn Dalgliesh's ideas for helping forgetful kids get organized: http://www.carolyndalgliesh.com/
• Sara Olsher of Mighty + Bright has lots of great tools for helping kids stay organized
• Our Fresh Take with Ryan Wexelblatt, the ADHD Dude

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