Parenting Help and Advice for Busy People: Teach Your Kids How and (Why) to Clean!

What can your children learn from helping you clean? They can learn which products complete tasks most easily. Kids watch a lot of television programming and they surf the Internet constantly. They see tons of commercials touting a boatload of cleaning products. They can learn by using some of these products which work and which aren’t really worth the money. They can learn about the process of trial and error by trying different methods of cleaning something and deciding for themselves which method works best.

Our children grew up helping with almost every aspect of cleaning, from dusting to floor washing to scrubbing the toilets. Did they love cleaning? No, but… do you? Cleaning is one of life’s activities about which we have no choice. A while back there was a children’s special movie called, “Free to Be You and Me.” In it was a bit about housework. It’s a monologue that asks kids if they’ve seen television commercials in which a pretty lady is smiling while she’s cleaning her house. The narrator points out that the pretty lady isn’t smiling because she loves cleaning or because she’s having fun enjoying the task. She’s smiling, it says, because she’s being paid to smile while cleaning! And, while I’m not suggesting that you pay your kids to smile while cleaning, there are ways to make that happen. It’s certainly not our favorite way to spend time but we do it because it has to be done.

Doing housework as a family saves us time so we can do other, more fun activities together. Does that mean that my children cleaned everything they had to and did every job without a second thought or objection? No, of course not. They were kids, after all, not robots. (Although with today’s robotic cleaning tools, maybe your kids clean with robots!) But, the tasks usually got done and somewhat smoothly at that. Sometimes it was even fun. What we did to make the time and task easier was to play music while we worked.

Our girls learned how to clean bathrooms at young ages and this served them very well. Because they understood how to complete this task on their own, we all benefit. First they took one small step toward self-reliance and independence. But, bathroom cleaning was never my favorite way to spend time so having to do it less often freed up my time and energy to do something more fun with my daughters when the cleaning was done.

Some parents have concerns about the safety of the products used in bathrooms and other household cleaning tasks. This is a valid concern and one we shared. That’s why we carefully monitored the products we gave them to use. There are tons of safer options for cleaning products. There are whole lines of environmentally-friendly products which are better for the environment and safer for humans. And, there’s a bonus in using some of those products because they often cost less than the more chemically-loaded choices. Baking soda, for example, is a safe and effective abrasive for cleaning toilets, sinks and tubs.

Glass areas can be safely cleaned with three tablespoons of lemon juice in a gallon of water. Plus, if you have any newspaper around the house (perhaps those circulars which show up in the mail), you can wipe with that and leave no lint or streaks. White vinegar is hard on dirt and soap scum and yet it’s gentle on surfaces and can even be used to clean wood. It’s also a natural odor eliminator, and, since it’s clear, it doesn’t stain surfaces. You can mix it 1:1 (a cup of each) with water and load it into a spray bottle and safely put it into your child’s hands for cleaning use. The spray will work cleaning wonders on counters, floors, and yes, even toilets. You can even warm it a bit which will make it more potent for cleaning shower walls. If soap scum or hard water stains are a serious problem, you can use white vinegar straight. Your children can help out by making the mixtures. Young kids love to pour and measure.

Toothpaste makes a terrific paste for removing crayon marks from the walls. If your kids make the mistake of drawing on those surfaces, they can undo their deed by cleaning the mess. Test a small spot first and then wash with a damp sponge. If the toothpaste doesn’t work, try a paste of a small bit of equal parts table salt and vinegar. You can use this to scour pots, too.

Need safe and effective wood polish? White vinegar rides to the rescue again, this time mixed with olive or safflower oil. One-third of a cup oil mixed with two-thirds of a cup vinegar makes a gentle polish for wood surfaces. Your kids can even use a small amount of straight olive oil on a soft cloth to wipe wood furniture. A little oil goes a long way here and the surface should be wiped repeatedly with a clean, dry cloth until all residue of the oil is rubbed off. You can also add a little lemon juice to the oil for a nice fragrant touch.

It’s imperative, whichever cleaning method you choose, to talk about it with your child to make sure he’s using the right product on the surface he’s tackling. After all, you probably don’t want your toilet wiped clean with a cloth saturated with olive oil. (Although they do say that olive oil also makes a safe and effective skin moisturizer!)

And, if you do allow your son to use regular cleaning products, check the labels first. There are some combinations of cleaning products that produce potentially toxic fumes. Ammonia-based cleaners, for example, must NEVER be used in conjunction with any cleaner containing chlorine bleach. That mixture may emit noxious fumes which are considered poisonous. This shouldn’t dissuade you from engaging your children in your cleaning duties, but it is a warning to read and heed all label cautions. Read labels and particularly warning labels carefully before using a product or letting your child use a product. Read the labels aloud to your child and you will be teaching a valuable lesson in preparedness and caution.

If you'd like to read more practical and easy parenting tips that will absolutely change your life (in a good way), check out my Kindle book, Raising Amazing Children While Having a Life of Your Own.