ARTICLE

7 Ways To Make Cleaning Fun For Kids

January 29, 2024 - 3 min read

Kids are notorious for making a mess… less so for pitching in at clean-up time. But who can blame them? Cleaning the house is no one’s favourite job. If you’re struggling to stay on top of the housework and keen to get the kids cleaning, perhaps it’s time you sprinkled some fun onto the chore chart.  Need inspiration? Here’s our guide to making cleaning fun for children (and their adults!) plus all of the time, money, and energy-saving cleaning appliances that can lend a hand, too!

A mother and daughter have fun cleaning the living room with a stick vac and a broom.

1. Create A Kid-Friendly Cleaning Kit

Nothing gets kids more excited than a bucket of stuff that’s theirs to keep, so create a kids cleaning set with their name on it! Pop in some microfibre cloths for dusting and natural cleaners in a spray bottle. Add a dustpan and brush in their favourite colour and some plastic bags to fill with toys that have gone wandering. “For younger children, a handheld vacuum is the perfect introduction to cleaning without letting them loose with your beloved stick vacuum,” says Nick Trajkovski, The Good Guys Buyer – Floorcare. “Amp up the fun by sticking some googly eyes to the nozzle, then help the cleaning monster gobble up all the mess!”

“For younger children, a handheld vacuum is the perfect introduction to cleaning without letting them loose with your beloved stick vacuum.” Nick Trajkovski, The Good Guys Buyer – Floorcare
BLACK & DECKER 16.2Wh Wet and Dry Lithium-ion Dustbuster product image

2. Make It A Game

Flip the script and turn tidy-up time into playtime! When this cleaning game for kids is over, the floor will be clear, clothes will be in the machine and bedrooms will be back to looking schmick. Here’s how it works: Pretend the washing machine is the goal and let the kids score points by throwing in their dirty clothes. Easy as that! If you’ve got your own basketball team of players, perhaps upgrade to a large-capacity washing machine that will power through megaloads. One with auto sensors will take the guesswork out of settings for a perfect wash, no matter what they throw in. 

Shop Big, Smart Washing Machines

Westinghouse 7.5kg Front Load Washer

Bosch 9kg Front Load Washer

Fisher & Paykel 10kg Front Load Washer

Fisher & Paykel 10kg Front Load Washer product image

3. Introduce A Reward System

School-aged kids are more likely to help if there’s something in it for them. Promise an ice-cream outing or some bonus screen time for a week’s worth of chores and watch them spring into action. To help you keep tabs, take the star chart off the fridge and go digital with one of the latest smart watches for children. 

4. Beat The Clock

Ready. Set. Clean! Setting a time challenge means quick results, especially if you pit siblings against each other for cleaning supremacy. Just make sure you set clear expectations – there’s no medal for a slap-dash job. Set your cleaning appliances against the clock, too. Family-friendly dishwashers, like the LG QuadWash Platinum Steel TrueSteam Dishwasher, have a turbo cycle to blitz loads in a flash. Now, who can unload those sparkling dishes in less than five minutes? Go! 

5. Tidy-Up Tunes

Sweep the porch then Shake It Off. Pack up the blocks, then Bust A Move. Adding dance breaks into your bigger spring-cleans will keep kids bopping along happily as they get their jobs done. Why not sit together to create a playlist of clean up songs for kids before you get stuck in? Then, crank up the portable Bluetooth speaker for a room-to-room dusting dance party.

Shop Portable Smart Speakers

JBL Go 3 Mini Bluetooth Speaker

Ultimate Ears WONDERBOOM 3

Bose Portable Home Speaker

Bose Speaker Product Image

6. Clean Sweep

Fill a bowl with kid-friendly cleaning tasks and let them fish out their jobs. Keep going, one pick at a time, until the bowl is empty and the house is good as new. This way, chance decides their cleaning fate and they can’t blame you for giving them “the worst jobs!”. To add some cleaning fun for kids, include a few lucky dips in the mix. Will they be ‘wiping the bathroom counters’ or ‘taking a drink break’?

A little girl washes her bowl at the kitchen sink.

7. Secret Helpers

Last but not least, let them in on the family secret: Some clever cleaning appliances will actually do the housework for you! Consider a robot vacuum part of the family and let it take care of the floors. The oven – it’s one of the most responsible and independent of the bunch now that it can clean itself at the push of a button. While they get to work, you can take a well-earned coffee break. Now that’s how you make cleaning fun for everyone!

 

Visit The Good Guys in store or online for the biggest brands and best prices on cleaning appliances to keep your home looking its best.

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