It can be incredibly difficult to convince your child to clean. Chances are that you’ve experienced the situation where you repetitively tell your child to clean up their mess, only to find that they’ve gotten distracted or neglected to clean. This can be an incredibly frustrated scenario, especially when it occurs on such a frequent basis. Understanding how to inspire your child to clean can go a long way toward alleviating your stress and ensuring a clean, comfortable home. Here are a few tips to help you inspire your child to clean.
Implement a Routine
Routine is incredibly important for children, even beyond chores and cleaning. Implementing an effective cleaning routine can help to ensure that your children know what to expect. This also increases the likelihood that they will complete their chores with minimal argument or distraction. Implementing an excellent routine can help to optimize your child’s regular processes. Appropriate routines can also help to improve their health, sleep cycles, and sense of security. Try to adhere to a regular routine as consistently as possible.
Consider a Reward System
A reward system can help to provide motivation to your child, especially when it comes to cleaning. Many parents feel as though this is “bribing” their child, but positive reinforcement has been shown to be an incredibly effective method for motivating your children to clean. These can be small, simple rewards. For example, if your child wishes to do something, you may tell them that they can do it after they have finished cleaning. Consider saving larger rewards for consistent, regular cleaning. Instituting a reward system, such as allowance in exchange for their chores, can help to inspire your child to clean.
Practice Patience
Remember that you have had a lifetime of practice when it comes to your chores and housekeeping. Your child won’t have the same experience that you do. Be patient with them, especially when they first begin to complete a specific chore. If you get frustrated with them while they are trying to learn how to do the chore, they will begin to feel resentful regarding that chore. Be patient and remember that you weren’t perfect the first time you swept the floor, and they won’t be either. Conversely, ensure that you provide them with more complex tasks as they master the previous chores. This can help to prevent them from getting bored.
Set a Good Example
Leading by example can be an effective way to inspire your child to clean. They look up to you and will want to complete the same tasks that you do. Initially, you may also want to consider making cleaning a group effort. This can help to make cleaning more fun for your child, as well as provide them with the direction and guidance that they need to clean effectively.
Make it a Game
Making cleaning fun is one of the most effective ways to inspire your child to clean. There are multiple ways that you can accomplish this. Encourage them to pretend while cleaning, by doing things such as starting a cleaning company. Competition is a great motivator for children. Either compete directly with them and see who can complete a task first or more effectively or challenge them to beat a timer. The more fun you make cleaning feel, the less resistance you will face when encouraging your children to clean.
Praise and Compliment
When your child helps you to clean, ensure that you spend time thanking them and complimenting their work. This will provide them with a sense of pride regarding their cleaning, as well as encourage them to clean more quickly and effectively. Providing positive feedback can help to inspire your child to clean.
Provide Direction
When you don’t provide effective guidance regarding new chores, your child will likely feel overwhelmed by attempting to complete them. They won’t know the steps to take and will simply become frustrated. Ensure that you provide detailed direction and remain available and willing to help whenever they need assistance. When you provide your child with the appropriate directions that they need, they will be able to approach the chore one step at a time.
Assign Age Appropriate Chores
It is important to consider the age of your children before assigning individual chores. If you assign them chores that are too advanced for them, they will be unable to accomplish them effectively. Conversely, chores that are too simple may result in the child feeling bored and quickly becoming distracted. Age appropriate chores are a great way to prevent feelings of stress, while ensuring that the task can be completed effectively. For very young children, it is likely that you will want to aid them with chores until they are adept at completing the chores on their own. When they grow older, you will want to take a step back from their chores. You should also stop cleaning up after them to encourage them to clean up after themselves.
Create a Checklist
Along with providing effective direction, creating a checklist can significantly aid in simplifying chores for your child. This can help them to see the next steps that you expect of them. It will also help to break their chores down into more manageable portions. This will similarly provide you with easier monitoring of their completed chores. In addition, a checklist may help you to provide a simple reward for your child. You can give them gold stars or fun stickers for each task that they complete.
Following the steps to inspire your child to clean can go a long way toward improving the comfort of your home. This can make your time much more enjoyable, rather than spending every moment cleaning while your child is at preschool. At Corner Canyon Academy, we host multiple locations, in both Riverton and Draper. This allows us to offer convenient, effective preschool classes for your child. To learn more about our classes, contact our experts at Corner Canyon Academy today!
Leave a Reply