Teaching Your Kids To "put It Back Where It Belongs"
If you have kids, chances are you find yourself saying, "Put it back where it belongs," at least 10 times a day. At first you might think it's just a stage they'll outgrow, but as they grow older, bigger, and messier, you realize it's going to take some serious effort to teach them to keep things orderly. Following are some tips on how to get your children to help out:
1.) Tell your kids what you expect and point out exactly where things belong. If they don't know where the baseball bat belongs, it's hard to put it back.
2.) Make cleaning up a game. If the mess was a group effort, challenge the group to clean up the entire mess in five minutes; if they do it, a reward will be given. Another take on this would be to award "points" to each child who puts their belonging away each day without being asked. At the end of the day, rewards would be given out based on total points.
3.) Use rewards to acknowledge good behavior rather than punishment for bad behavior. Telling your kids they'll get two Oreo cookies after dinner if they pick up their toys will usually have better results than telling them they'll have to go to bed 15 minutes early if they don't. A reward can be anything that your child responds well to, whether it's a treat, playing a game, or reading a favorite book at bedtime.
4.) Use a "chore" calendar to act as a reminder and track progress. Put all the tasks, like picking up their room, putting dirty clothes in the laundry basket, or putting their bike in the garage, on the list. When they do the task, they mark it off the list.
5.) Put up sticky notes or other visual reminders to act as reminders. For example, on the garage door where they come in, post a note, "Put the basketball back."
6.) Sincerely praise your child when you see them doing well. And brag up their good behavior in front of their grandparents or other people who your child looks up to.
7.) Be consistent and give it time. Good habits can take months, or longer. But, if you consistently guide them, and encourage and reward good behavior, chances are your kids will start putting things back where they belong more often than not. You don't want them to stress about it, but want them to be aware that they are expected to pick up after themselves.
8.) Make it a family routine. While ideally your kid will put something back immediately after use, that won't always happen. But, if you make it a routine where every member of the family chips in at the same time every day, you'll see results. Try 15 minutes right after dinner or homework.
9.) Don't let your kids do anything fun until they've picked up after themselves. For example, no TV, no computer, no games, no friends, no phone, etc. -- until they've put everything back where it belongs. This won't come off as punishment if you incorporate it as routine and it's simply expected, like brushing teeth, taking a bath, doing homework.
The sooner you get your children involved in helping out and putting their things back where they belong, the more likely they'll embrace this behavior and carry it through adulthood. Kids as young as 18 months can help with simple things. By age 5-6 they should be able to put all their toys away, put their clothes in the proper drawers, and put crafts, games and other items back when they're done with them.
Paul C. Stokes has more than 15 years article writing and nearly 10 years online marketing experience, including email newsletter marketing. Topics of special interest and experience include email newsletter marketing, sailing, boating, fishing, travel, writing, family, health and fitness, home improvement, wine and technology. Mr. Stokes is the founder of www.eNewsletterSolutions.com and www.PCScontent.com.
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