How To Make Cleaning Fun For Kids

Posted on Thursday, April 16th, 2020

Want to get the kids involved in cleaning up? Look, it’s no easy feat getting your little ones involved in the tidy up, especially when you’re battling against TikTok and YouTube for their undivided attention. But who says cleaning has to be boring? Like anything in life, perception is everything! Why not change their attitude around the cleanup and inject a little fun and games into lacklustre chores!

We’ve compiled some surefire ways to make cleaning a little less tedious and a little more enthralling, having them put down the iPhone and pick up the spray and wipe in no time!

1. Pump Up The Jam

Kids love music, you love music, we all love music! 

Some fun, fast, and upbeat tunes can get kids moving swiftly and will make the idea of cleaning almost a game! Blast your little one’s favourite artist, movie soundtrack, or playlist throughout the house and encourage them to dance their way through the kitchen cleanup. Take it up a notch and have them pretend they’re in a music video where the lead is dramatically cleaning a bathroom, or putting away their toys in a spectacularly fast fashion.

2. Roll The Dice

Turn cleaning into a literal game. Every side of the dice can represent a cleaning task that needs to be completed, then simply let them roll away!

If you’re a real creative you can turn this into a homemade board game, where they need to escape dust bunnies and dirt to win. As they move along the board they roll the dice and perform a cleaning task to progress to the next level. Kids love a little competition, and they’ll be so entertained they won’t even notice folding down the washing is a chore.

Come on, lucky six!

3. Make It Super

What kids don’t like superheroes? Embrace their love of the humble cartoon champions by encouraging them to play dress up and let loose on the mess in their room.

Maybe Batman’s latest adventure is cleaning up toys to save Gotham from destruction? Or, Wonder Woman needs to tackle the bathroom to maintain order in Themyscira?

No matter where their imagination takes them playing dress ups and channelling their love of faraway fantasy lands can help take cleaning from mundane to marvellous.

4. Tumbling Towers

Do you have an old Jenga tower lying around? Use the blocks to write down tasks on the pieces and then simply play Jenga!

If they’re lucky enough to pull a block with a task written on it, they get to complete it, making all the other players super envious. 

This works well with little kids who need a bit more motivation to line up their teddies and put the Lego away neatly. Plus, turning your cleaning tasks into a family games night seems like a win-win for everyone! 

How To Keep Kids Motivated With Cleaning

Even with these ideas, it can still prove to be challenging to keep kids interested and focused on the task at hand. There are a few factors that can make all the difference:

Make It Entertaining

Approach the cleaning chore as anything other than just a boring old task! Keep it light, fun, and easy. Channel your kids’ interests and hobbies and make your cleaning routine far more interesting! Imagination, enthusiasm, and creativity will go a long way when encouraging them to clean their room, wash the dog, or vacuum the living room.

Reward Them For Their Efforts

A little reward for finishing a task can help them feel like their efforts have been valued. Maybe a little sweet treat for mopping the floor, or a trip to the movies for finally cleaning under their bed.  

Now, if only someone would reward us for making the bed, or cleaning out the fridge…

Reasoning Goes A Long Way

Sometimes kids need a good reason why you’re telling them to pick up their toys for the fifth time, and ‘because I said so’ doesn’t always cut it.

If you’re struggling to make progress giving them a reason why the cleaning is important can help motivate them to complete the task at record speed! Maybe they can’t have their friends over for a sleepover until their wardrobe has been tidied up, or they can’t take their dog to the beach until they’ve picked up their toys. A little reasoning can help put urgency on the tasks, and help them understand why they can’t just ‘please leave it to tomorrow’.

Need extra help around the house to keep everything in tip-top condition? At MyHome Cleaning, we provide an extensive range of services that will help your home stay neat and tidy, giving you the day off to spend it with the family.