Children's Cleaning Games

It's a fact that if you make a task or chore fun and interesting, we are more apt to participate enthusiastically with a cheerful attitude. The same holds true for getting children to clean. If you make a game of the chore, children are more prone to get the job done. Here are some great tips for turning cleaning into fun by using games to clean the house:

• Treasure hunt. If you want your children to clean their room, hide small toys or treats within the clutter. Tell your child that you are going to play a game, and that you have hidden three treasures in her room. So as to distinguish the treasures from the rest of the clutter, place each of them inside of a small Ziploc bag, and hide them well. Tell your child to straighten and clean her room and, if she finds a treasure, to bring it to you. When she has cleaned her room entirely, she must come tell you so that you can check it. Only then will you allow her to play with the treasures.
• Musical cleaning. Perhaps you want your older child to clean the bathroom, which involves four smaller tasks—clean the bathtub, the toilet, the sink, and sweep the floor. Place a CD player in the hallway and allow your child to listen to his favorite CD by his favorite musical artist. Tell him that he needs to complete all of the four tasks by the time six tracks play (typically, each track is anywhere from three to four minutes long). If he completes the tasks in the allotted time, he gets a reward of his choosing.
• Simon Says. If you've young children, play a version of Simon Says to get the cleaning done. Perhaps you have a few children, and your living room is full of their clutter. Tell them that you want everything picked up from the floor and put away, and that you will start the game. Start by saying, "Simon says pick up ten Lego's and put them in the bin." The child who puts away ten Lego's, gets to be Simon next. If a child says, "Put away the doll's clothes" without prefacing it with "Simon says," then that child has to put away the doll's clothes without help.
• Beat the Clock. My Mom taught me to wash dishes using this method and, to this day, I still glance at the clock while I'm cleaning the kitchen, making a game of it. Set an egg timer or your kitchen stove timer for an allotted time, and if your child completes a chore before it sounds, then she receives a reward. The reward I received for completing the dishes in the allotted time was praise, and that was a very good reward.

Never bribe a child with money to clean. They need to understand that cleaning is a part of life, and it is expected of them as part of the family. One example is that you could give your child an allowance for completing chores, similar in method or idea as to when you get your paycheck for work.

While you might reward children for a job well done, make sure that the reward is small and age-appropriate. For instance, if your older child cleans the garage, do not buy him an iPod. That reward is not appropriate and better left for a birthday or Christmas present. Instead, as an incentive to complete the job thoroughly, tell him that his reward will be that he can use the computer for an extra hour on the weekend or rent a favorite video game.