Before you embark on this cleaning venture, however, it is important to keep your expectations

dirty room is a point of honor.

Simply letting go of the messy room battle can actually work in your favor. Your kids will quickly discover that they lose track of their valuables underneath all of those piles of toys and dirty clothes. As they frantically search for that favorite video game or the homework that’ s due today, they learn that keeping things neat makes their lives easier. Personal experiences are often the best teachers. Not only do they learn a valuable lesson about the consequences of messiness, but they do so without you having to do anything.

Parents who have a really hard time letting the messy room issue go can use the When-Then routine.“ When I can see your entire floor, then you can watch TV, or go outside and play.” Creating a When-Then routine minimizes the amount of time spent fussing or fighting. A natural incentive means that your kids will be eager to get the cleaning out of the way so that they can move on to more enjoyable activities.

Another method is to make a chart that lists all of the things your child needs to do. When they complete everything on the chart, they receive a small reward. This is especially helpful for motivating young children. Start out by making a checklist detailing tasks that are appropriate for your child’ s age, with pictures that they can refer to. It helps if everything has a home, so work together with your child on labeling boxes and bins and deciding what goes where. Making the chart interactive, such as with a connect-thedots scheme or pasting on fun stickers for each completed task, will keep your child interested in it. It also helps to use frequent, simple rewards to keep their motivations high. For toddlers, try an end of the hour award; for preschoolers, end of the day; for school age kids, use end of the week rewards. A month is an eternity for any child, so very low. A child’ s it’ s best to keep the goal in sight. room is usually Fri, the 16th- arrive Similar to the chart method, you can also try a Ticket only place where Sat, Mom they, Steph System and K. hang Start out your for child bday out with a few“ free” tickets. For

Sun 18th- Oli, Maddox and K go to SF have control over each chore that they complete, award them one ticket. You

Mon 19th- Oli and Maddox return to Gilroy their environment Tues, 20th-. It Oli can meets also K in give SF later them in tickets day for having a good attitude about is the place that or evening they cleaning. If your child whines or refuses to obey, they lose feel they can Wed fully, 21 through tickets Fri 23rd-. At the Oli and end K of in the day or week, award your child

Napa express themselves with a special treat based on the number of tickets they’ ve

Fri, 23rd- we return to gilroy from napa and they may Sat be, 24th- family collected lunch or, such early as dinner an ice cream for five tickets, or a trip to reluctant to give Sun that 25th- no plans the movies for ten. up. For some Mon- kids, K a works in SF Children or from home are far more responsive to what we do than

Tues- we leave in the morning

what we say, so set a good example for them. Start out doing the chores together to show them how things are done. While you are cleaning, put on your child’ s favorite music so that they see that doing chores doesn’ t have to be tedious. This could also be a great time to strike up a conversation with your child, so that while you’ re working together, you’ re also bonding. Another way to make cleaning time fun is to read a good story while they work. Their minds will be focused on the plot rather than on how boring they might think chores are. Regardless of what you do to boost your child’ s interest, being there with them will show your support and teach them that cleaning can be a rewarding experience.

Whether they learn it on their own or need a little help from you, teaching kids how to make and keep order will prepare them for the challenges of adulthood. When you show your children how to keep their things safe and take the time to organize what they value, you are making the abstract concept of“ responsibility” into a concrete set of actions. Eventually, they’ ll come to see that taking loving care of the things they have is a way of giving love back to the ones who provide for them.

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GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN MARCH / APRIL 2016 gmhtoday. com