My daughter will even stop watching TV to play ‘tidying up scooter.' It has been a tidying miracle for us.ġ2. She loves playing ‘tidying up scooter' where I search for objects and put them in her basket while she delivers them to the right place. My daughter has a scooter with a small basket that hangs on the handlebars. Have some sort of vehicle that can deliver objects.
I don't need to tidy you up!” The laughter and connection can help your child feel upbeat about helping.ġ1. Tidy up your child – If you're tidying up, pass by your child and say, ”hmm what needs tidying up, perhaps this”' and start to pick up your child, and then say ”oh whoops! sorry, that's (insert child's name).
Tidying Emergency – We have a toy ambulance with a siren, so sometimes I turn it on and say, ”Emergency! There's a giant mess, somebody save us now!”ġ0. Shoe Mops. Parent educator Sarah MacLaughlin recommends these fun shoe mops, to give mopping the floor a bit of novelty value.ĩ. Drawing soapy pictures on the shower walls was always a good way to get them an eventual clean.” – Julianne IdlemanĨ. Shower or Bath Clean With Colourful Sponges ”My daughter would also happily scrub the (bottom half) of the shower glass as long as she got to be in there naked playing with colorful sponges while she did it. Then she would happily mop up all the bubbles and all I had to do was the final sweep through to get the corners and make sure the bulk of the water was up.”ħ. Soapy water mop up Julianne Idleman says, ‘My daughter used to love to be given a dish pan of soapy water to splash around with on a floor that needed mopping. This can make tidying up take a little longer, but in the long run it can build the close connections children need to play independently while we got on with tidying.Ħ.
So put away your forks in the fridge or your milk in the dishwasher, and then exclaim, ”oh no! I didn't mean to do that.” This even works for the under two's and is ideal for clingy little ones that won't let you tidy up. Making Mistakes Tidying – Playlistening is all about making mistakes and doing so while tidying is a recipe for a giggle fest. I am going to sit here and do nothing instead.” Then get your child to force you to tidy up, with lots of giggles to release any tension about tidying!ĥ. Stephanie Parker, Hand in Hand instructor in the UK recommends saying in a loud, playful voice, ”there is so much to tidy up, but there's no way I am going to do it. There's lots of possible ways to incorporate playlistening into your tidying up fun. Playlistening – The art of getting our kids laughing while we're in the less powerful role, is the perfect way to get the chores done. One of our favourite chore songs is a astronaut and space song so sometimes my youngest will also put on a space helmet to put her laundry into her closet or to dry dishes.Ĥ. Song Race – Ariadne Brill from Positive Parenting Connection says, ”We like to race against some of our favourite songs. Laughter is a great way to increase co-operation, and all the giggles release tension and grumpiness.ģ. I don't want my clothes in the bin!” My daughter found this hilarious. Clean up clean up everybody do your share.” I sang this with my daughter and also added in some silly verses, like ”put mummy's clothes in the bin” and then I would say in a playful horrified tone. Have a clean up song, My friend Deanna and her son sing this together, ”Clean up, clean up, everybody everywhere. Connection breeds co-operation so our children are much more likely to enjoy helping us out if we've spent some time doing what they love.Ģ. Thanks to my friends, Hand in Hand instructors and and parent educators who have shared what works in their household.ġ. Here are 25 fun tips for tidying up with your kids. So put the emphasis on fun and connection, and the chores get done as if by magic! However work is so much more enjoyable when we can work together. In her article here, Patty Wipfler explains that we often assume children should do their chores alone as most of us had to do when we were young. They probably didn't seem fun when we were young, and we can pass on these negative associations to our children. We have a lot of responsibilities in our busy lives, and it's hard to enjoy chores. We all want to live in a tidy house but it's not easy with kids around. By Kate Orson, from Listening To Tears Hand in Hand instructor Skye Marilyn Munroe's family in playful tidying up mode! Her son throws items of wet washing to his dad, and he then hangs the on the line.