by Cleaning Tribe - May 3, 2020

Getting Everyone Involved In House Cleaning

So, you have a house full of people who make the home dirty, but you feel like the only one doing the cleaning? This is a pretty common scenario these days for mothers in particular, and we have some things that you can do to help get everyone onboard and helping with the cleaning process.

1. Talk to Your Spouse

You want to set up a plan with your spouse first of all. This involves getting a proper cleaning checklist to work off and of and make the entire process go smoothly.This means agreeing on what tasks need to be done on a schedule and then dividing up the tasks that the two of you have to do. You can each be responsible for certain cleaning jobs and alternative on the tasks that no one wants to do, like cleaning the toilet. You can also set up a plan to decide which chores the kids can do and which days they can do them. The two of you don’t have to micromanage every aspect of the plan, but you can make a few general rules and then leave the details to you to sort out.

2. Create a Task List for Your Kids

Next, you will want to make up a list of jobs that your kids can do. Be sure to divide tasks among the kids and choose age-appropriate jobs for each of them. Younger children can clean up their toys and make their beds, with older children taking out the trash, sweeping, washing dishes and doing other chores that require heavy lifting or a little bit of training. Whatever jobs you give your kids, be ready to supervise them at first or get the older kids to supervise the younger kids. Keep in mind that if you give the smaller ones too many jobs, they might not get done properly or in a timely manner. It’s probably best to leave the deep cleaning to the adults.

“Children are great imitators. So give them something great to imitate.”said Mindy, an LA Housekeeper

3. Decide on Rewards and Scheduling

You may want to motivate your kids by letting them enjoy some sort of reward for a job well done. For instance, you can tie their allowance into their chores as well as dessert or screen time. If they do their chores with a good attitude and in a timely manner, they get to enjoy these privileges, and if not, then they don’t get to have dessert, watch television or get allowance. You can make up your own rules, but these are just some guidelines to give you ideas to start with.

You can also put some activities behind a chore gate. What this means is that only after they complete their chores can they go play outside or watch a television show or have a snack. This will help to motivate them to do their chores and can even lead to them doing their chores without being told so they can get to enjoy the activities that they love. Here is a few other ideas of rewards you can implement with your kids.

It may seem impossible to get everyone onboard helping out with the chores, but if you put these ideas into practice, pretty soon you will have the kids and spouse pulling their share and working together to keep the house looking clean all the time.