Playroom for Big Kids (ages 8-13): How We Updated Our Tween Playroom

The hill I will die on? Big kids still need to play.

As children enter the tween years, something funny happens. We start replacing toys with screens. Not always intentionally, but because we’re unsure what play is supposed to look like anymore. They are also more likely to talk to their friend about the latest game than what they built with magnetic tiles. I get that. Somewhere along the way, many of us start to wonder whether our kids have simply outgrown play.

But here’s the truth. Older kids still crave places to build, imagine, create, and hang out. They just need a space that grows with them. And that’s exactly why you landed here. Let’s create a playroom for big kids where they can let their guard down and still be kids.

Supply List: Ready to skip ahead? I added everything for your big-kid playroom, ages 8-13, here.

Table of Contents:

1. Do big kids even need a playroom?
2. What changes between ages 4 and 12?
3. Inside our updated big kid playroom
4. How we decluttered
5. What we removed
6. What do big kids actually do in a playroom?
7. How do we keep it clean?
8. Your biggest takeaway from this post

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Do big kids even need a playroom?

When I see them building with magnetic tiles or pretending to shop with the neighborhood kids, I don’t think, “Shouldn’t they be too old for this?” I breathe a little easier. They’re still playing. They’re still imagining. They have a place where they don’t need to perform or worry about looking cool. They have a safe space to simply be kids.

I remember needing that, too.

Even as an older child, my friend and I still played Barbies. We decided we’d keep it a secret because we thought we were getting “too old”. Looking back, I’m so grateful we had that space. Play gave us a way to process friendships, growing up, and everything that felt new and confusing.

That’s the kind of room I wanted to create for my own kids. Not one filled with the latest toys, but one that quietly reminds them they’re allowed to keep being kids for as long as they need.

Upper elementary and middle school can feel like a lot. During these years, kids are constantly measuring themselves against their peers. Play becomes one of the few places they can experiment, negotiate, imagine, and simply exist without worrying about being “cool.” Kinda like what Breakfast Invitations did for toddlers and preschoolers in the early years.

RELATED: After 12 years of doing it myself, I decided I needed to call in for some help! I used Holly in the House, and she is incredible. She listened to all of my needs and was on call to chat about our project every step of the way.

What changes between ages 4 and 12?

Play doesn’t necessarily change in a way that it goes away as your child grows older. Instead, children are introduced to new ways of playing and start to zero in on what brings them joy. Over here, I have seen card games and strategy games grow, and listening to more sophisticated books has become more common over the years.

The way to play is structured from a little kid to big kid space, and may start to shift like this:

Inside our updated big kid playroom

Regardless of age, having play zones in your space is most important. It helps children focus on what they want to play without distractions. Have you ever walked into your office and there was a pile of laundry nearby? Yep. Me too. This often takes away from what I was about to work on. For children, play is work. And then less clutter around the toy, the better.

Here is how to create the best hang out space for tweens.

LEGO/STEM Storage

In the early years, we used Container Store Drawers and IKEA Trofast for LEGO storage, and it worked great! It was at their height and easy for the boys to get when they needed.

But as I updated the family game room for ages 8-13, I wanted the screen-free space to look more sophisticated and clean. We went with a different approach to store LEGOS, magnetic tiles, gravitrax, and other building toys that they still enjoy and use.

Pro Tip: The drawers can get a little heavy, so spread your bulky building toys across multiple drawers. Find the updated LEGO and building storage here.

Creative Station

We had this Pottery Barn kids’ table for years and years. But it was time to upgrade to something the boys could stand and chat around as they hung out with their friends. I found this freestanding island at IKEA in the… kitchen section! And it is everything I would want in a creative space for ages 8-13. Find the creative space table here.

To the right is art storage, and to the left is a place to store cardboard for easy art ideas.

Right side art storage:

• Art storage stacking bins

Left side cardboard storage for all the cardboard play ideas:

• Cardboard storage bag

Reading Corner

I believe a couch in a space for all ages is another top priority. Why? In the early years, it provides the parent with a home base. You can be in the independent play space with your toddler and preschooler without playing with them. (Kids like to be close!)Here, they know you are close, but you can do something for yourself on the couch as they play.

In the later years, I still use the couch to share the space! However, it is also used for them to lounge on after later wake-ups, listen to their Yoto, or just chill and chat.

Game Shelf

Games are SUPER important to us. The boys use them with their friends in between screen time, and we also have family game night. My goal was to keep the space clean, decluttered of games we no longer play, and organized for grab-and-go.

How we store board games:

We use these board-game-thin, stackable containers.

How we store card games:

We use these containers to store card games.

How we decluttered

1. Take everything (I mean everyting) out and sort into categories on the floor.
2. Look at each item and decide whether to keep or donate it. Having everything on the floor helps make this decision easier because you will want to get rid of the clutter.
3. If you cannot decide, put it in a storage bin to come back to. Nostalgic toys are terrific for this in-between category.
4. Load up your car right away.
5. Bring donations where you’d like them to go, or hire a neighborhood kid home from college to help you.
6. Begin sorting into the space you have. Keep play zones in mind and make sure similar toys are grouped together.

And what about those toys that we cherish? Use a glass container to display them as a nod to their childhood. There is just no way I am getting rid of the counting bears. Shockingly, they still take them down to use them!

What we removed

So what did we remove? Lots. Here’s a list of what we removed from the room:

• Picture books we weren’t going to circle back to
• Teaching supplies, I was hanging on to “just in case”
• Broken toys
• Oversized toy storage
• Toy storage that they have outgrown
• Broken sets
• Games that are never played with
• Catch alls
• Random plastic bins
• Stickers (Ugh, I know it.)
• Markers without caps

Again, this may be a little tricky. But once you see the breathing room to dive in to play, you will not look back. There isn’t anything that I wish I had held on to.

What do big kids actually do in a playroom?

What do big kids actually do in this creative space? Welp. They play! (Shocker, I know.) The biggest surprise? They don’t need me to entertain them either. Once the room fits their interest, they naturally move between building, creating, inventing, and hanging out with friends. But that couch? I can still hop on when I want to share the space and hang with them.

Some ways they play that are on repeat:

• Cut cardboard (The Chomp Saw) into armor
• Use endless amounts of painter’s tape
• Play Gravitrax
• Build elaborate magnetic tile builds and ball ramps
• Use the magnetic tile rails as swords (keeping this real)
• Listen to audiobooks
• Build LEGOS
• Play “shop” (It’s a whole thing with the neighbors)
• Create art

And the best part? When friends come to play, this is the first room they land. Kids still have the need and desire to explore play ideas.

How do we keep it clean?

It is one thing to have a room filled with toys. It is another to have a room with purposeful play zones that kids can keep tidy in between uses.

Having designated storage is key. Open baskets, visible shelves, fewer toys, and labeled game storage all help. I have linked what we use in this updated room here.

You know what also helps? Their age! I like to pick a section and send a child to manage those tasks. For example, I may say, after you clean the magnetic tiles, you can play on the Switch. Or, gather all the Gravitrax and put them in the drawer. Then you can head out on your bike.

Your biggest takeaway from this post

But above all, remember you created this space for your child to play in. You weren’t asked to submit your pictures to House Beautiful. Make the space unique to your child and allow them the freedom to let loose. Remember, they aren’t getting that at school.

Phew! Have a question about playrooms for ages 8-13? Drop it below in the comments!