Involving your family in household chores can seem like a daunting task, so that’s probably why you just do it all yourself! Just the mention of the word will send any kid running for the hills. However, there are small ways to incorporate your entire family, especially your children, into taking on some cleaning responsibilities by making it both fun and age appropriate.

If you’re trying to introduce your children to the concept of cleaning up after themselves or helping out with chores around the house, but aren’t sure where to start, the bright side is that we’ve all been there! Here are some tips on how to introduce chores to your family.

Why Chores Are Important Life Skills

Teaching your children how to take care of possessions, both their own and those that belong to the family is an important life skill to instill in children of all ages. Doing chores is also a nice way for your children to learn about giving back to you, their parents. Holding children accountable for their chores can lead to them feeling a sense of purpose and actually make them more responsible little human beings.

Overwhelming Laundry

The whole laundry process can be one of the most overwhelming chores. Try including your kids in some of this process. Start by making sure dirty laundry makes it to the laundry room. There is no reason you should be finding dirty laundry throughout our home. Designate a dirty laundry basket for each of your bedrooms. In my home, we are lucky to have a laundry shoot by the bedrooms. All dirty clothes make it into either a laundry basket or the shoot – no givebacks!

If your children are old enough, you might want to start introducing the concept of separating lights and darks or how to properly start the washing machine and transfer to the dryer. If you have younger children, they’ll still have fun separating laundry, but won’t be able to run the machine themselves. Unless your children are master folders, you might want to do that yourself, but you can have your kids help put away their own clothing. By having your children included in these tasks, they’re taking ownership over their belongings. If they’re putting away their laundry, they’ll know where their favorite t-shirt or pants are, no need to bug you at a later time.

Act Your Age

You can’t expect your children to do all of the cleaning by themselves. When it comes to toys or books that are left out, think of it as a team effort, not you versus the children. I’ve started having my kids pick up one more toy than their age. For example, if your child is five years old, then they need to pick up sixtoys. I’ve found that by giving my children a clear-cut number of items they expected to clean up, it makes the whole process a little less daunting for them.

It’s All In The Timing

Don’t rush the process! Take into account any extra time needed in order for you and your children to get the chores done without making them feel like cleaning is an afterthought or should be rushed. Give clean warnings before any transition from playing to cleaning. Sometimes I find myself telling my girls that cleanup time will start in ten minutes, only to forget to check the clock and then feel rushed when we actually need to start cleaning. I’ve started using the alarm feature on my phone and on smart devices throughout my home to set a friendly reminder for all of us that there is a definite start time for cleaning up.

Organize & Declutter

I’ve found that making sure everything, from books and toys to shoes and backpacks, has a home, it’s that much easier for you and your children to do chores and put things away. Invest in good quality storage bins and a label maker. As you start to organize your items, you’re going to find junk. Toys that don’t work, markers without tops, clothing, and shoes in the wrong sizes. This is the best time to donate, recycle, or toss those items in the trash. The less clutter, the less mess. If you’re not ready to completely get rid of an item, but don’t need it at this time, store it in your basement or garage in a clearly marked storage box with a lid.

Hire A House Cleaning Service

If you try a few of these tips and are still finding it difficult to get your family on board with helping out with chores, it might be time to call in a professional. You can choose if you need a service to come in to help with some spot cleaning or a full home overhaul. It can truly be the fresh start you’ve been longing for in order to get everyone on board to help with chores