Yesterday The Little Guy was desperate to mop the kitchen floor; so off he went to get out the mop, until he realized that there were a couple of toys on the kitchen floor. So he picked up all the toys and went to put them away. Then he mopped the entire floor, on his own (we currently use one of those Swiffer Wet Jets, which I picked up on Freecycle, mop, pads and solution - everything! Score!!)
Of course, when TLG had finished mopping the floor it was still wet, so he made a caution sign to alert everyone to the still wet floor.
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| The Little Guy's caution sign; note the freshly mopped floor in the background! |
This has been a topic of conversation with friends and on various yahoo loops quite a lot just reccently - how do you get kids involved with house chores.
And on of my first answers is that they have to be allowed to do it! And it should be fun.
And here is the thing - letting them do it, and allowing them the space to do it imperfectly is better than not letting them do it all.
Because chances are they will make a mess, or leave the chore unfinished, or it won't be as good as when you do it. But all of those things are okay! Your child will be learning to clean, have respect for their environment, and it might just wear them out a bit!
And did The Little Guy mop the floor perfectly? Well - no! But it's alright; he is four years old, and he thinks that mopping the floor is "the cat's pajamas" (his quote on mopping!) One day, with years of practice he will be expertly mopping his own floor!
What is your kiddo's favorite way to help around the house? What do you do to allow that to happen? Feel free to share; I'd love to hear from you!
