Preteen girl looking at a cell phone with her parents

Family movie night? There's an app for that

Download our new mobile app on iOS and Android.

Get the app
Parents' Guide to

Sparking Joy with Marie Kondo

By Ashley Moulton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 8+

Organizing guru Kondo returns for more decluttering zen.

TV Netflix Reality TV 2021
Sparking Joy with Marie Kondo Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

See all

There aren't any parent reviews yet. Be the first to review this title.

What's the Story?

In SPARKING JOY, organizing maven Marie Kondo returns to expand her KonMari method beyond people's homes. She helps businesses, organizations, and relationships that have fallen victim to their lacking organizational skills. Similar to Kondo's first series, Tidying Up, Kondo asks her pupils to go through each of their workplace belongings and consider if it sparks joy for them. If not, they thank the object for its service and get rid of it. Then, she helps sort and organize the remaining possessions. The participants find that while Kondo is technically just helping them sort objects, the process brings up a lot of deeper feelings. While Kondo is helping businesses and organizations this time around, her work still focuses on the personal relationships that are affected by spaces and things.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say: Not yet rated
Kids say: Not yet rated

This show picks up just where Kondo left off after the smash hit Tidying Up that made her KonMari method part of the cultural zeitgeist. While ostensibly this series has a new focus (businesses, organizations, and relationships), it is essentially the exact same show as its predecessor. Sparking Joy has the same format, the same on-camera translator, and follows the same organizational process. Kondo is just as calm and serene a presence as in the first series. Kids and teens who have a brain for organization will enjoy this series and may be inspired to declutter. It's a great show for family viewing, and may even sneakily help inspire kid motivation to create more order at home.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Critics of Kondo talk about how she encourages people to throw out out a lot of things. What are some ways you can declutter without affecting the environment as much? Think about the 3 R's (Reduce: only buy things you really love in the first place; Reuse: donate items so other people can use them; Recycle: recycle things that can be recycled.)

  • Which of your belongings sparks joy? What does that mean to you? Why do you think people have such big feelings for objects?

  • Families can talk about the emphasis Marie Kondo places on getting organized. She believes that organizing physical spaces and belongings affects people's emotional well-being and other parts of their lives. Do you feel that way? Do you feel more calm when your things are in order?

TV Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended tv lists

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate