If your kids are struggling to know what to get you or your partner for Mother’s Day, why not suggest they help with a few jobs around the house? This present won’t cost them a penny and will probably mean more to you than another scented candle! Not only will the gift of cleaning help you, it will also help your little ones realise that making the bed or unloading the dishwasher isn’t as hard as they may have first thought. ACE has listed some jobs your little ones can do at a whole range of ages. They may only be small things but we’re sure they’ll make a big difference to your day, and you never know, it may become the gift that keeps on giving!
Unless you’re very lucky and have managed to not experience the terrible twos, getting a child at this age to help out around the house may not be a tantrum-free experience. But, if you make it into a game, it won’t be as bad! If you have more than one child, make picking up their toys, books and games into a race. Giving them a reward once they’ve finished the jobs can work equally as well if they have no one to compete with. Having a laundry basket accessible to your little ones will help teach them, from an early age, where to put their clothes once they have worn them – hopefully keeping their floor clothing-free!
Photo from georginaclarkeblog on Instagram
At this age, the kids will still need a bit of help with learning the big tasks like tidying their bedroom. However, this doesn’t mean they can’t help out! Sit back and watch an episode of your favourite TV programme (or dance along to your favourite music) while your little ones set to work on the small tasks like emptying their bedroom bin or sorting the socks into pairs. This is also the perfect time for teaching them important skills like making their bed, or setting the table correctly. Teaching them to make their bed in a couple of easy steps will allow this task to become an everyday habit.
Dusting may not be the most interesting job, but it is an easy one for your little ones to get the hang of, and as long as you don’t have lots of easy-to-break items around the house, they can be left to work while you have some me-time. If you’ve done a big food shop for the Mother’s Day meal, get the kids to help bring in the shopping from the car and unpack it – this is a great way of getting them involved and will teach them where everything is stored in the kitchen! After dinner, get them to assist with clearing the table and teach them about how to load and unload the dishwasher – this could even become their task for after dinner every day. If they accidentally spill some food down them when they’re trying to help, soak the item in cold water with a capful of ACE for Colours!
At this age your little ones should be able to do most of the jobs by themselves, so you could suggest that they match all your plastic storage containers to their lids (because we all know how annoying it is when you have a tub and no lid to match!), or sort the dirty laundry by colour ready to go in the wash. If your children are feeling really generous, they could set to work on getting the car sparkling – ACE Power Mousse is great for getting the wheels nice and shiny! With spring setting in soon, all the flowers in the garden will be beginning to bloom, and watering them is an easy job that the kids can be left to do. If you don’t have much of a garden, indoor plants need hydration too! ACE for Colours will get any dirt out of their clothes in no time, so you don’t have to worry about their clothes getting ruined in the garden. At the end of the day, what better way to bond than by cooking the Mother’s Day meal together? Get the younger ones to help with washing the vegetables, and your older kids can do the chopping.
Photo from pinkpeonyhome on Instagram
What do your little ones help out with around the house? Let us know at @ACECLEANUK on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Don’t forget to pick up a bottle of ACE in Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose (and lots of other retailers!) when you’re doing the shopping for the Mother’s Day meal.
