Was your home perfectly tidy until you had children? And now, you can barely see the carpet under the toys, books, and clothes scattered everywhere. Keeping a house in order with energetic kids around is challenging, but it’s definitely possible. Instead of tackling the mess on your own, why not make cleaning fun and turn it into a game? The kids will enjoy themselves, and your home will be tidy again! So, how can you motivate your child to help with household cleaning?
Household Chores Suitable for Children:
Not all chores are suitable for children, especially those involving sharp objects or tasks that require reaching high places. These should be left to adults. However, there are plenty of tasks where children can help. Here’s a list of suitable responsibilities for younger children:
Acceptable Chores:
- Loading and unloading the washing machine
- Folding clean clothes
- Putting clothes away in drawers and closets
- Dusting or polishing low surfaces, like coffee tables
- Sweeping the kitchen floor
- Cleaning pet fur from the couch or carpet
- Tidying up toys, games, and books
- Cleaning their bedroom
- Making the bed
Unacceptable Chores:
- Loading and unloading the dishwasher (sharp knives)
- Hanging clothes on a line (too high)
- Polishing silverware (sharp knives)
- Cleaning the kitchen and bathroom (strong cleaning chemicals required)
- Vacuuming or using electrical appliances (for younger children)
- Polishing mirrors and TV screens (risk of glass breaking)
- Cleaning litter boxes or trash bins (dangerous bacteria)
- Ironing or cooking dinner (risk of burns)
- Sorting recycling (sharp edges on metal cans)
If you want children to gradually get used to their new responsibilities, create a cleaning schedule. Give each child their own set of tasks for the week. You could also turn it into a fun game: write each task on a piece of paper, place them in a hat, and let the children randomly choose their chores for the week. This random selection avoids arguments over who does what!
Cleaning as a Game
Once you’ve decided on the chores that your kids can help with, it’s time to turn them into fun and engaging adventures. Here’s how you can transform chores into games based on your child’s age, interests, and abilities:
Laundry
- Match clean socks into pairs as a timed competition.
- See who can fold shirts the fastest.
- Play “Delivery Service”: have them put clothes in the correct drawers and shelves.
Room Cleaning
- Play “Store”: gather items from the floor that “need to be delivered” to a shelf or toy box.
- Turn on some music and dance with the kids while cleaning.
- Use a stopwatch to reward the first child to finish tidying their room.
- Practice aiming by throwing dirty clothes into the laundry basket from a distance.
Kitchen Cleaning
- Play dress-up as a waiter or butler while cleaning.
- Let them pretend to be in an adventure movie or on a quest by giving them secret missions.
- Buy colorful toy cleaning equipment, like a bright toy broom.
- Pretend you’re filming a commercial for a cleaning product while using it together.
Reward System
Kids respond well to praise and recognition, and if they feel they’ve done a good job and had fun, they’ll be more likely to help with chores again. One way to reinforce praise is to create a rewards chart where they can earn stars or smiley faces as they complete tasks. A full week of completed chores could be rewarded with their favorite dessert on Sunday or a trip to the playground.
In short, try the above tips to inspire your child to help with household cleaning!