When our kids were little, we had to provide for all of their needs. We were responsible for providing them with all the care and support they required, including ensuring that their belongings were adequately stored and functional. Is milk or baby formula in the fridge? Check. The beloved toy has new batteries, right? The infant has clean clothes tomorrow; folded laundry put away? Check it three times. Children must be taught how to take proper care of their belongings as they age. Yet how?
By establishing age-appropriate routines, imitating positive role models, and learning respect for both their own and other people’s property. The earlier they begin, the more commonplace this will be.
Motivate Them
It’s important to encourage kids to do something rather than just yelling at them to do it as part of overall child-rearing. As a result, we will save a lot of time and anxiety if we can find an effective way to encourage kids. Children should understand that being responsible has benefits, or more specifically, that benefits should motivate them.
Consider this: If your child has been taking good care of his or her toys for a while and you notice that they are tidy and in their proper places, why not reward him? For example, by buying them the best kids’ drone, perhaps. In this way, the kids would realize that what they are doing is right, leading them to treat the next toy better than the last, in the hopes that a similar good reward will be in store. They will enjoy their worthwhile reward in the interim, but more importantly, they will feel deserving of it.
Start With Small Tasks
“Clean your room now,” What a frightening phrase that is for a young child! An entire room wholly clean? Whoa. Let’s step back a moment. Parents understand what we mean when we tell kids to “go clean your room,” but kids probably don’t. Smaller “chunks” of information need to be taught to children, and this process begins when they are very young with manageable tasks.
Make it customary, for instance, for a two-year-old to put away his or her last toy before pulling out a new one. At that age, the child may require assistance as well as very specific instructions, such as “Put the blocks in the basket.” To prevent it from being broken, lost, or stepped on, this will help the toy or special product last longer. It’s okay to assist a younger child with this because, by the time she or he is three or four years old, s/he will be putting blocks in the basket by himself/herself before taking our cars or dolls.
Keep It Fun
You can use it to teach your kids how to keep their belongings secure, spotless, and organized as a game. And that will spur them on to continue. You can time children to see how long it takes them to put everything in its proper place after you have explained your expectations to them (e.g., one toy is placed away before another is taken out, designate specific places for each toy/game, etc.). Here, encouragement is effective. When you compliment kids for taking great care of their possessions, they’ll continue that behavior because they’ll connect it with positive feelings.
Everything in Its Place
Sure, this also implies that it is your duty as a parent to make rooms or storage for all of your kids’ belongings. Closets, dressers with drawers, boxes, and baskets are all useful storage options. If you instruct your child to put things away, you must give things a place to go. If not, your request is equivalent to giving your child an impossible task—assembling a puzzle with three parts missing. You want to make every aspect of educating your child to take care of their belongings as enjoyable and encouraging as you can. Cleanup is simple, and maintaining things is less of a chore if the space is accessible and convenient.
Be a Role Model
If our children don’t observe clear, consistent models, we can’t expect them to treat their possessions well. Parents and other family members make the best teachers for children. Children look to their primary caregivers and older siblings as role models for a variety of things, including how to handle important possessions. How can we expect our children to behave better if we, the grown-ups in their lives, are throwing our possessions around? As a result, look around. How carefully do you look after your possessions? Do you exhibit courtesy toward priceless goods that you want to last? Have you created a designated spot in your home for items like jewelry, heirlooms, keys, and glasses? Is the house clean, on the whole?
The best you can do as a parent is to heed the advice and impart knowledge to your children, but there is a distinct learning curve. Obtain some patience. Aid your children. The time and effort spent will be repaid in saved goods and sanity.
