Children should learn to always clean up after themselves, whether it is their dirty dishes, the craft project they made and the leftover materials, or the toys they played with. Sometimes cleaning up can be an overwhelming task. It is rarely something kids want to do.
So, give them choices. If they dumped out a large tub of blocks and they are spread out everywhere, ask them “Which blocks do you want to pick up first, the red ones or the blue ones?” If you see they are beginning to get tired or losing energy with their cleanup activities, change their focus by saying something like, “There are still lots of blocks to pick up. I wonder how many there are. Let’s count them as we put them back in the tub.” Another way to make cleaning up fun is by playing music and singing. We had a clean-up song that we used at our school. Sometimes we had to put the song on repeat until everything was completely cleaned up.
At my school the children knew that when they were done eating, they would need to clean up after themselves. They pushed in their own chairs and then threw their own paper plates, cups, empty containers, and napkins in the garbage. Use plates and cups that are unbreakable and teach your child how to put their things in the dishwasher. If you don’t have a dishwasher, let them help you wash the dishes in the sink and dry them with a towel.
The bottom line is this: cleaning up needs to be something they learn to do as a habit. And they are never too early to learn the importance of cleaning up and how to do it right. Here is a nice article that encompasses all they need to know: 11 ways to teach young kids the value of cleaning up — and get them to do it willingly.
