Many parents lament the fact that their child is messy, but rather than accept it, you can take some steps to change it! Tidiness and organization are habits that can be taught, and you’ll find that you can do a lot to keep your child’s room looking great without having to yell at them over it. Take a look below at some things that can help you get started when it comes to raising a child who doesn’t live in the eye of a hurricane of toys and clothes!
1. Clean with your child
Don’t hold your child to a standard that you are unwilling to hold yourself to. Family cleaning days can help instill a habit for cleaning being a social and enjoyable activity, rather than something that is used to punish them. If you get everyone involved in cleaning see about making sure that there is a treat at the end. While the treat should not be a payment to your children for work done (after all, they are benefiting from the cleaning as much as anyone) it can help your children associate cleaning with something pleasant.
2. Timed cleaning
Instead of saying something like, “I want you to clean your room,” set a timer and tell your young child that you want him to clean for the full five or ten minutes. When you give a child a task like cleaning an entire area, you’ll find that it can easily overwhelm him, leading him to dawdling and not doing anything at all. Instead, give the cleaning a limit that he can easily see and a goal that is more loose. You’ll find that this can improve things a great deal.
3. Places to put things
When you think about organization, one thing that you have to be aware of is the fact that if you want to be organized, you need places to keep things. Make sure that your child has a place for all of his things, whether they are toys or clothes. One way to do this is to give him boxes, small ones that can slide under the bed, or to install a coat rack at his height in his room. A coat rack that your child can hang things from can be very useful when you are looking to give his room a significantly neater look.
4. Making the bed
Make sure that making the bed turns into a habit, no matter how young your child is. This is an important thing to do because your bed tends to dominate the look of your room. A clear space can help the whole room look a lot less cluttered, and it can help your child understand how attractive having space to move around and live in is.
Remember that while some children are naturally tidy, others simply need to learn it as they go. If you have a strong interest in making sure that your child develops good habits regarding his environment, take a look at the tips above to get started.
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