by Wendy Brumback

Created on: February 20, 2010   Last Updated: February 22, 2010

It’s that time of year again and cleaning is in the air. However, your house still has to be lived in during the cleaning process, and your kids can make messes faster than you can clean them up.  There is a solution to this problem – let your children help.

Now, I know getting your kids to clean can be a difficult task, but when done right, involving your kids will help the process along as well as the added bonus of teaching your kids a spring-time tradition.  Your kids will be happy to help and feel grown-up and respected when they are involved.  Here are a few tips to help you involve them in the cleaning process.

Tip #1 – Start by cleaning in short time frames.  Kids often have a short attention span, so a task that will take more than about 15 minutes probably will not go over well.  Stick to an easy task that, if abandoned, can be picked up again later with ease.

Tip #2 – Make it a competition or game.  Kids all love games and they all love to win that game.  Set up a race to finish a task first, or an overall competition as to who can get the most tasks done.  Either way, when there is a game your kids are much more likely to get involved.

Tip #3 – Reward them.  There are several ways to reward your kids.  Money is perhaps the most popular reward.  The second would be a gift like a new video game or toy. You can give them a set amount for every chore they do, or a set amount for a certain amount of time. If they regularly have chores, you can give them immunity from some or all of their chores for a week.  Another idea is to take a trip to the zoo or park.  Finally, you can consider the idea of taking them to an arcade.  Just give them a handful of tokens and they can spend several hours playing. Once they are done, they can use the tickets they receive to exchange for a gift.  This is a great way to incorporate the idea of money/gift with a trip somewhere.

Tip #4 – Let them use cleaning items they find interesting.  For reasons unknown, different kids are fascinated with different cleaning tools.  Some kids like brooms, others like mops; some kids like dusters, others like the vacuum.  Whatever it is, find tasks that will involve their favorite cleaning tool.  They are more likely to stay interested in the task and do a good job if they are using something they find interesting.

Tip #5 – Make it simple.  Don’t

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