Clean up time can be one of the BIGGEST transitions and we want to help you at home making this time a little bit easier for you. In our classrooms our teachers make clean up time part of their day, but it is not a chore! Our teachers get creative and make clean up time a FUN part of the day and during this time where you may stress there could be a lot of sighs, crying, not helping, etc… you will actually see great memories being made, smiles, laughs, and fun having by all.
So, what’s the secret?! How do our teachers turn a not fun time into the best time?! Well, let’s take a look at a few tricks they do that you can start doing at home!
How fast can we do it? You can say:
Let’s beat the clock! Beat yesterday’s time. Can we get everything put away before the music stops?
Remind children of how much time is left:
Use a timer, hour glass or clock. Remember, young children don’t have the concept of time down yet; it would be a good idea to also use a timer of some sort. When using a clock as a reminder with young children- say, “when the big hand is on the two, we will start to clean up”
For older children, have a clean up count-up or countdown
Use a stopwatch and chart how long it takes to clean up. Say, “you have until the count of five to be ready ____. Then count: 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.” Start a count down at whatever number you think the youth needs to be ready. For example, start with 5, 10 or 15 depending on the activity to be put away.
Kids love parties! Have a cleaning party
On a pre-made sign-up sheet have the children initial what they want to clean and/or organize; when all jobs are complete- the group has a celebration!
Now, these are just a few tricks that our teachers add into their daily routine for clean up, we would love to hear some of the things that you do at home that helps you! We know that all families and children are different and we would love to hear some new ideas that maybe we can even try in our classrooms! Please comment below to share your tips and tricks during clean up time!