If you feel as if you are on a battleground when requesting your children to keep their rooms neat and orderly, let’s help with that. As the daily wars gradually take a toll of your mental fitness. Therefore, you may simply clean up whenever your children are not there. However, this will only make your children take you for granted. Instead, determine to make them participate in the ‘cleanliness’ drive!
Lead by Example
Children observe adult behavior very closely. Therefore, it would be wise to set a good example yourself. To illustrate, it is important how you approach your mundane, day-to-day tasks. Then again, there is the question of whether you take pride in your home or not. After all, actions speak louder than words! If they are the right ones, your children will emulate your example.
Stress the Importance of Cleanliness
Do not make it sound like a lecture! Just insert the importance of cleanliness into casual conversations. Emphasize that it helps them take up responsibility for enjoying their own spaces. Cleanliness includes putting away toys and other things in their proper places, placing dirty laundry in a hamper, vacuuming the floor, removing hazardous things, making the bed, and hanging up washed clothes. The room should also have a trash container, as well as a box/bag for storing clutter/unwanted items. Keep the cleaning supplies in a bucket, and place it somewhere within easy reach.
Carpet the Room
Smaller children should have something on the hard floor, to protect them from the effects of falls. Then again, they will be able to see things fallen on the carpet. Not everything is visible on a tiled floor. Thirdly, things will not scatter across the room. Everything will be on the carpet, and easy to pick up. At the same time, a carpet works for older children and adolescents too. Therefore, purchase a thick and good-quality sample from a reliable store selling carpets.
Have Discussions
Initiate conversations on how the rooms would look better via rearrangement of furniture, placing decorations in appropriate places, painting pictures for walls, etc. Let them have a sense of personal pride in creating their own spaces.
Similarly, share the chores with them in the beginning. This will teach them how to handle various tasks.
Offer Incentives
It is all too easy to promise monetary rewards for completion of tasks. However, this may seem akin to a bribe. Therefore, find other ways of appreciating their behavior. For instance, you could have a point system in place, which helps them to access a privilege (more television/more playtime), or a prize (purchase something of value). Have a chore chart in place, for the whole week. Younger children adore stickers.
Teach Them to Share
Some things, no matter how old, are too precious/special to throw away. However, you may encourage your children to keep old clothes, toys, or games aside, for giving away to charity organizations, orphanages, etc. They will hold on to the ‘share and care’ concept throughout their lives.