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We love our little ones, but let’s face it, kids are messy. Whether those messes result in stains or just general clutter in your home, it can be hard to keep everything organized. The keyword here is hard. It’s not impossible. We’ve got five organization solutions to help keep you sane and your home clean.
Give Every Possession a Home
This may seem like a no-brainer, but the key is making sure that everyone knows where the items they are in charge of belong. Try labeling drawers with non-permanent stickers with their contents clearly written out. And, if they’re supposed to put away belongings (like their toys or shoes), make sure they can access the place the item belongs.
Create a Cleaning Kit
By keeping all your cleaning supplies in one portable and accessible container, you will be ready to take care of spills and stains on a moment’s notice. Utilize a shower caddy or similar container and keep all your sprays, soaps, and tools together. You can grab the caddy and run to whatever room needs your attention, and it will be easy to see what needs refilled instantly.
Checklists, Checklists, Checklists
While lists don’t work for everyone, they’re a great place to start to help your little ones visualize their tasks. Start small to ease them into the concept by having a weekly checklist of things they need to clean or organize for the week. Ask them to do one chore a day and let them check off the item once it’s done. They’ll start to gain ownership of that task and gain a sense of accomplishment when it’s done.
Give Them Options
The first mistake parents often make is turning cleaning into a punishment or a commandeering chore which teaches children to associate cleaning with a negative experience. Not only does this make it harder to instill good cleaning habits in your kids, it can affect the way they view cleaning and organization as adults. Start treating your kids like mini grown-ups (kind of). If you’ve implemented a checklist, show them their list for the week and let them choose where to start. This gives them a sense of autonomy AND you’re tackling clutter.
Turn It Into a Game
Stop calling cleaning and organizing chores. Instead, turn them into quick games that engage your kid and create a sense of competition. Get the whole family involved! Try setting a timer to create a sense of urgency and call it a race. The chore gets done in record speed and your children start to associate cleaning with fun, family activities!
Once you've mastered the art of organizing all your kid’s messes, check out our big checklist of all the ways you can get your littles ones to help around the house.
