The younger kids actually love helping with the household chores but the bigger kids take some motivating to help.
I decided to make cleaning fun and started playing cleaning games which work like a treat, the kids have fun and I get a nice tidy house. As we mums know housework chores never end so why not get the kids involved and lighten the load and have a bit of fun in the process?
Make Housework Fun
Contests: who can tidy their rooms the fastest, who can hoover their bedrooms fastest? Take a stop watch and time them as they do a task and record their times on a sheet. It gets the kids moving and the housework done in speedy time.
Music Game: there is nothing that gives up on their feet and feeling happier than some music, make a DVD of their favorite songs and then set tasks, they have to dance while they tidy
Team work: divide the family into teams and one does upstairs while the other does downstairs, who’s floor of the house with be the tidiest?
Numbers Game: who can put away 5 items the quickest, the children pick up 5 items out of place and put them in the right place and then race back.
Alphabet Game: Who can find something starting with A that needs to be put away?
Reward charts: Stickers can be used for completing tasks, all kids regardless of age loves to be rewarded. It does not have to cost you, the prize for a certain amount of stickers can be something as simple as a trip to the park.
Cleaning games makes housework more fun; you can involve the children and teach them about helping out and give them a little responsibility. Cleaning some becomes fun when you all join in and make a game from it.
There is nothing stopping the younger kids getting involved and our toddlers are more than capable of following very basic tasks. They can pick up their own toys and place them back into the toy boxes.
The toddlers love nothing more than helping to dust and with their own little dusters in hand they are more than keen to run around polishing anything in site. Keep praising and in return you will keep them motivated.
Do your kids enjoy helping around the home? Do you have any cleaning games to add to the list?
