If you’ve exhausted the Joe Wicks workouts or the CBB’s bite size programmes, then why not involve your young children in some simple cleaning chores. Not only will these activities help to keep them busy during the daytime, but it will also help you in keeping your home clean (and germ free).
JDK Cleaning’s own MD, Jack Kelleher, has young children at home and these are some of the cleaning jobs he regularly involves them in.
Cleaning Glass Panels
If you have any sliding doors or glass panels in your doors, let the children at them for as far as they can reach. They will really enjoy being let loose on the glass with a spray bottle of glass cleaner and a roll of paper towels to rub it off. It’s great fun as they will see a difference with a few quick wipes. As the smudges and marks on the doors were probably made by them in the first place, it’s a small step in cleaning up their own mess! And while they have the spray and towels to hand, see if there are other items they can clean, like glass coasters.
Watering the Plants
Whether indoors or outdoors, a small watering can will be seen as a toy to a young child. So, they will be excited to help with watering plants both inside and out, with instructions not to over water of course (though whether they’ll stick to that is another matter).
Dusting
Little children will inevitably enjoy a little bit of dusting. They can grab the feather duster or microfibre cloth literally dust everything (though maybe not the expensive family heirlooms). Older children may also enjoy using a spray and cloth to dust the furniture and other hard surfaces.
Cleaning Up Pet Hair
If you have dogs or cats at home, then inevitably there will be pet hair all over the place. Give the kids a lint roller and show them how to use this to remove the pet hair from fabric and other surfaces, particularly in areas where they like to rest and nap.
A Little Bit of Hoovering
If you have a lightweight, portable, battery hoover, then this would be ideal for young children to use on floors or furniture. It’s particularly a good idea to get them to hoover up any crumbs from the floor after meal times, again it gives them some responsibility for cleaning up their own mess.
Sweeping Up Outdoors
When you’re outside in the garden with the kids, make sweeping up the patio, drive, deck or pavement a game. See who can get the biggest pile and then you can dispose of the debris in the normal way. This is particularly fun in autumn when the leaves are falling off the trees.
Washing the Dishes
You might not give them your best china to wash, but your child will have so much fun handwashing their plastic plates and cups! After all, what child doesn’t love playing in warm, soapy water?
Washing the Bath Tub
This will help to make bath time more fun. Whilst the youngsters are having a bath or shower, get them to clean the surfaces at the same time. They can use their shampoo or bubble bath for this task to avoid any harsh cleaning products. Alternatively, if you use safe, natural cleaning products, get them to put their swimming costumes on and clean the bath or shower as a fun game.
We hope you and your children enjoy some of these suggestions. Look out for more cleaning tips from JDK Cleaning coming soon.