As parents, we want to teach our children good habits that will serve them well throughout their lives. An early lesson we can teach them is how to develop good habits in keeping their bedrooms tidy. Even toddlers can begin to grasp the concept of picking up toys, putting dirty clothes in a hamper and putting similar items together. Here’s a list of tips and methods to get kids excited about keeping their rooms clean.
Start Early Teaching That Chores Come First
Save things like TV and videos or anything else that your child considers his most fun activity until the room has been cleaned up. If you get into the habit of cleaning as soon as you get home from school or work, the chores will get done sooner so they can get on with play or whatever fun thing they are excited about.
Break the Job Down into Categories
Picking up 50 books can be a daunting task for a small child. However, picking up only one category - books - suddenly becomes manageable. Look at the entire room and say to your child, "Well, it's quite a mess, but really I only see three categories of things to clean: books, dirty clothes and toys. Pick one category and finish just that one, then you can watch a half hour of TV."
Instill Pride in a Job Well Done
Make sure your child hears from you that you are proud of them for keeping their room clean. Keep your remarks positive and encouraging. If your child cleans the room without being told, heap a ton of praise on the child and make sure to tell the other parent the great thing they did and mention it to the grandparents. Make sure the child hears you telling others what a great job he or she is doing.
Give Them the Right Tools for the Job
If a child doesn't have sufficient shelving for books, or the right sized tote to contain all of their toys or too many clothes for the available drawer space, you're going to have to step in and help out. Make sure the job is manageable. Help them establish a place for shoes, have room for all the books and if they own a small train set, have a tote that can fit all the pieces for the toy.
Make Time to Purge Old and Broken Toys
While we keep bringing new things into our homes, we rarely make sure we also get rid of old things to make room. A child's room can be a holding tank for all sorts of collections, toys no longer working, books from babyhood, and scattered pieces of jigsaw puzzles. Set up some time each week to toss out the trash and broken toys, and then bag up clothes that no longer fit to pass onto a friend or a charity. You can also routinely go through the books and make sure they are age-appropriate and interesting for your child.
Learning to keep one's room clean is a good skill to learn and there's no better time to begin learning than as a small child. With the right tools and lots of encouragement and praise, your child will be on the way to learning a good life skill.
