It’s a battle of wills between you and your child when it comes to keeping the room clean. Well, it is the same story in every household. The parents undergo same frustration every other day, and the child whines or dawdle as the reminders get loud. Sometimes, things take a nasty turn when threats get made, scolding take place and everyone’s mood gets spoilt. Kids like their room messy and parents want the room clean. The struggle continues and sometimes the parents give up or do it themselves.

Why Is It Important To Imbibe Order And Discipline In Kids?

Establishing routines and discipline will ensure stability in your child’s life. When you insist your child to place things in order, it also teaches him to be responsible in life, for his own things. It is the parents’ job to teach their child to keep their room in order and as clean as possible. If you teach your kids how to remain sorted and organized, you are ensuring his success in future and they will grow up to be better individuals.

Top Tips To Teach Kids To Keep Their Room Clean

1. 1. Set An Example: In early childhood kids learn the most from their parents. Kids get influenced by ‘what we do’, rather than ‘what we say’. So set a very good example in front of them. Keep your own room clean and things in order. Do your daily tasks with a positive attitude and show them how important it is to be in order. This will get imbibed as a way of life in your kids and there will be lesser struggle afterwards
   2. Make a Checklist: It will be a good idea to make a checklist for them to follow as the little ones would not know where to start and what to do next. If you give them clear instructions which they can refer to, it will be much easier for them. Include some pictures in the checklist to make it look colorful. You can include the following tasks:
      • Make your bed
      • Organize the toys
      • Place all your clothes in the cupboard
      • Organize the books and the study table
      • At last you can include a reward like “Your favorite frozen yogurt is waiting in the fridge”
   3. Implement A Clean Up Time During The Day: Set a time of the day for them to do the clean up like before dinner or after snacks. Give them 30 minutes to put all toys, clothes at their places and do the cleaning. This will help establish a routine and if you ensure that it if followed, you will love the results!

1. Help Them Initially: Involve yourself in the cleaning and organizing his room in the beginning to help him understand how to sort everything and to help him get used to it. The key is to make everything fun you do together. Younger kids are more likely to do a task which they thoroughly enjoy
2. Set a Standard For Health And Cleanliness: Some of the tasks like clearing up their garbage bin should be done every day and picking up broken glass pieces, sharp things need to be discarded immediately. Set some non-negotiable standards regarding these tasks and have them follow it
3. Make Sure There’s Room For Everything: If the child does not know what belongs where he would not know how to clean the room. Give them enough boxes or cupboards to place things in. It will also be good to do the labeling on the boxes. Do it together. It will make their work a lot easier. When a child knows what belongs where they are one step closer to it
4. Let Them Decide: Give them a sense of control over their rooms like let them rearrange the furniture or paint the wall. Ask them where they want to place each item. That way they will have some pride of the place and they would want to keep it clean
5. Pass Along Old Stuff: If your kids have enough of what they need, collect some of his old toys and clothes and pass to the needy. When they get a new dress or a new toy ask them to choose one which they would like to donate to kids like them. This will make them learn that for every few things that go in the room, something needs to come out
6. Involve The Child In The Process: Once in a week, you can involve them when you do the house cleaning for example you can tell them “today is the kitchen cleaning day and you have to help me.” Getting them involved will help them know that keeping clean is an important part of our lives. To make it fun you can make your own song for cleaning that you and little sing together in the process
7. Reduce TV Time: Reduce their TV Watching time. When they are busy most day with TV, they do not want to do other activities. To increase their interest in cleaning activities, you must reduce their TV time. They would have more free time without the TV and it would be then easier for you to increase their interest in other activities

Children are not born with cleaning skills. It is very important to consider their age when you are trying to teach them to clean their messy room. Younger children will need a step by step direction. Try following these tips for a couple of days and you will see the difference in the situation.