With summer break coming up, children will have far more free time than during the school year. For those of you with children, this is the perfect time to get the kids up and working – working on cleaning that is! Here are some tips on how to divvy up the jobs and get the kids to help out more.
Spray Bottle Jobs – Give your child a spray bottle and a rag or paper towel and let them wipe up the floor or sink. It’s simple enough that you only need to give them a few instructions and off they go! Make sure the spray is not too dangerous for children and the child knows cleaning supplies are not edible. You could buy colorful children’s gloves to protect their skin, too!
Laundry – You don’t have to do all of the laundry yourself! Have your child sort out the lights and darks or have them load and unload. Start them out with these simple parts of the laundry and you can work your way up to them being able to fold and put away their clothes too! Teaching them how to use the washer and dryer even when they can’t quite reach on their own will also be good for the future when they grow tall enough.
Dusting – Like the spray bottle, using a fluffy feather duster on shelves and other surfaces is a simple task that can save you tons of time once they can do it well. Make sure they know to only dust what you say they should and to avoid very fragile, breakable objects.
Make It Fun! – Cleaning is likely going to sound boring or like too much work for many little kids, so make it fun! Challenge the kids to see who can put away their toys faster or finish dusting their half of the room the best. Play for the highest points by tossing the clothes into the dryer from a yard away or play music throughout the house. Make up something fun that can help your child enjoy cleaning as more than a chore.
Don’t for get to Teach Them Patiently – How else are they going to clean the way you would like it? Children look up to their parents and like imitating them, so set aside time to patiently help them learn how to clean well. Try helping them with their task the first few times until they can do it well on their own. Teach them what counts as a clean room or a job well done. You could even find or make smaller, child-size supplies they can call their own.
Taking these tips into account, you can get a willing little cleaning helper or two this summer, and maybe the child will even learn to not make as much of a mess, too!
Kelly’s Kleaning, LLC is a full-service cleaning company. We specialize in residential, commercial, apartment move out and new home cleaning. We offer our cleaning services to individuals and businesses in and around the Reading area.
