We’ve all wished that the cleaning fairy would come into our home in the middle of the night and clean our child’s room. We would tuck our little one in bed with a kiss and then the next day awake them to a clean and sparkling room. Oh, thank you great fairy! Now back to reality….it’s not going to happen and there is no “easy” button.

 

If there is one thing you can count on about teenagers – is that their rooms are usually a mess! I think that young people might need a few tips and tricks to help keep the mess down to a minimum. This way the job won’t feel so overwhelming. I know a few simple cleaning rules to follow to keep their room clean– and if they keep up with it, there won’t be much of a mess at all. And I am an expert at THAT subject!

If you have a messy teenager living in your house, you may want to start a new class in your house entitled: How to keep your room clean!

– Keep your Clothes off the Floor
If there is one thing that can help keep a teen’s bedroom looking better, it’s by keeping all clothes off of the floor.
Get your teenager a hamper for all soiled clothing to go into.. This is an easy win.
The clean clothing needs to be put away right when it comes out of the laundry. Of course, you’re going to have to provide your teens with plenty of places to put those clothing items in to in order to help keep things organized.

– Yes There Really is a Place for Everything
When trying to teach your child how to keep their room clean, start by helping them do an in-depth spring cleaning and organizing their belongings.
Put items where they belong, find a place for everything, using labels, bins, boxes, drawers and shelves for specific items.
True, just because every item in the room has a designated home, does not mean it will make it back to that spot, but at least you know that everything in the room fits and can be put away if your teen desires.

– No Food Allowed in the Bedroom
From a glass of milk, a bowl of cereal to a piece of cake or a sandwich, food in the bedroom always ends up with crumbs on the floor; dirty dishes stashed under the bed and wrappers tossed everywhere.
The best way to keep foodstuff from creating a mess is to forbid any type of food in the room.
This may sound like a drastic move, but think about whether it is really necessary for anyone to eat in their bedrooms. Unless they are sick, most teens can survive by walking to the kitchen for a snack. Plus it gets them away from the computer screen and gives them a little exercise.

– The 5 Minute Clean Up
Here’s a tip we instituted with our kids.
Every night before bed, we insist on a quick 5 minute pick up. We asked our girls to take five short minutes and put away anything that was out of place. If they failed to do so, then we confiscated all items on the floor the next morning.
Now, 5 minutes is not always enough time to get everything put away, and we allow for that. But as long as they put in their 5 minutes, we leave the rest as it is.

– What makes a good daily routine?
There are no rules about how many or what kind of routines you should have. All families are different, and what works well for one family might not work for another.
Your routines need to be based on your individual family needs. But effective routines do share three key features:

• Well planned: in a good routine, everyone understands their roles, knows what they need to do and sees their roles as reasonable and fair. For example, your children know that they take turns with washing up and drying up each night after dinner.
• Regular: good routines become part of everyday family life. For example, you might all look forward to Sunday night barbecues with your children’s grandparents.
• Predictable: in a good routine, things happen in the same order each time. For example, you always wash school uniforms on the weekend, so you know they’ll be ready for Monday morning.