Give That Kid a Paint Roller

By Georgia Orcutt

When the late Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch delivered his now famous "last lecture" in 2007, his inspirational lessons on life and achieving your childhood dreams included advice for parents on – of all things – kids' bedrooms.

"When I was in high school, I decided to paint my bedroom," Pausch told students and faculty in that lecture, and he showed them a slide of the quadratic formula he painted on his childhood bedroom wall.

"The great thing about this is [my parents] let me do it. They didn’t get upset about it. And it’s still there. If you go to my parents’ house, it’s still there," he said. "To anybody out there who is a parent, if your kids want to paint their bedrooms ... let them do it! It will be OK. Don’t worry about the resale value on the house."

It was one of many simple, heartfelt ideas that Pausch, a 47-year-old father dying of cancer, imparted in a lecture that became a YouTube sensation and a bestselling book. He believed that letting a child choose and participate in how his bedroom looks will inspire his creativity and independence.

At several points in your kids’ lives, the time comes for changing something – or everything – in their bedrooms. You might have a new baby on the way; you might be moving to a new apartment or house. Perhaps your toddler has outgrown his crib; your 3-year-old and your 6- year old need to share a room; or your 12-year-old is angling for more grown-up digs where she can hang out with friends.

Whatever prompts the change, get your kids involved as much as possible in decisions about their own rooms. And try these helpful tips gleaned from parents and child bedroom professionals:

Let Your Child Pick the Color

"It’s a nice idea to let kids pick their paint colors and celebrate their individuality," says Boston interior designer Edie Twining of Twining Design. "My daughter actually painted her own room when she was 12. It’s a good experience to get them involved in doing it." (Think latex paint and dropcloths.)