Everyday life for working people with children is often hectic and full of surprises. This is precisely why a cleaning routine is so important. This way you always have an overview of the tasks at hand and keep the household under control. A cleaning plan can work wonders because it illustrates the tasks and allows you to quickly orientate yourself. It is also a good way to teach children the principles of planning. That's why in today's article we offer you several tips to help you create it. And of course also templates for a cleaning plan for the whole family.
Every family is unique and every family's morning and evening routines are different. However, a few tips can help you find the balance.
- Divide the apartment into areas – kitchen, bathroom, living room, etc. The goal – one family member should take over one area for the day.
- Think about which onestasks dailyand which ones – are due weekly. Which ones can you do in the morning and which ones can you do in the evening?
- What basic rules should you follow every day?
From my experience: My small family (husband, daughter and dog) lives in a small apartment. On the one hand, this is advantageous because we actually have a lot less to clean. On the other hand, it can quickly become a challenge if several family members want to clean the apartment together. Whatever works – divide the apartment into zones so that everyone can do their tasks in peace. We also have a cleaning routine that we do every day - for example, everyone cleans the toilet with a brush after each use. Cleaning up in the children's room is more problematic. My daughter knows that every object has a place. But she always tends to pull out all the toys at once. And if the game lasts a little longer, they all lie on the floor. What works well for us is cleaning up the toys several times a day. Before going to bed, we check again whether all the plush toys are “sleeping” on the shelves.
For us it looks something like this:
Example of morning and evening routine with child:
Morning cleaning routine:
Since mornings should be quick, we only have a few daily tasks on our list. The rest will be done in the evening.
- Make the bed
- Ventilate
- Empty the dishwasher
- Put dirty laundry in the laundry basket and remove laundry
- Clean and wipe sinks in the bathroom after morning rituals.
Evening routine:
- Clean up the children's room
- Put away laundry
- Iron clothes
- Clean up the dining table
- Run the dishwasher
- Run the washing machine
- Dispose of garbage
Put together a weekly cleaning plan for the whole family (including template)
In addition, each of us has one or more weekly tasks that we need to complete. This includes, among other things, vacuuming and mopping the floor, dusting surfaces, cleaning kitchen appliances (refrigerator, microwave, stove/oven), cleaning the toilet area, cleaning the bathtub or shower cubicle, watering flowers and whatever else comes along (washing curtains, cleaning windows, etc.) .
My daughter takes on simple tasks - she waters the flowers, dusts various surfaces in the living room (cupboard, television, various shelves and cabinets). She changes the tea towels and towels).
I clean the microwave, clean the stove and oven, and clean the refrigerator. My husband takes over the bathroom and toilet. As for vacuuming the floor, one of you will do that with the help of my daughter.
Make your monthly cleaning schedule as simple and clear as possible
Over time, we have found that the simpler a cleaning plan is, the better. We also try to distribute the tasks throughout the week instead of postponing everything to the weekend. Seasonal work is also carried out on weekends.
When creating a template, we aimed to make the cleaning plan as clear and simple as possible. But the template should be a lot more – appear colorful and cheerful.
Our cleaning routine and challenges
We try to establish a cleaning routine where nothing is left behind. But we're not cleaning professionals and we don't have to vacuum under the beds every now and then. We walk through the entire apartment and then check with our daughter whether everything is really clean. Together with the cleaning plan for the whole family, of course. And we like to mark the fact that today, for example, we wiped all the window sills, light switches or door handles.
Another challenge with the cleaning routine: We don't just have to do the tasks because they are in the daily schedule. We should try to do them as well as possible so that we can then save time. Heavy contamination is much more difficult to remove. We as adults understand this quite well, but a child still cannot understand the consequences. That's why we simply didn't vacuum a carpet in our home office for two weeks and then cleaned it together with the little one.
What works well, however, is collaboration. When everyone cleans together - Dad the bathroom, Mom the kitchen and I the children's room, then you feel like part of a team. It's much easier than just one family memberfor cleaningis responsible on Monday. It may also be that you don't feel well right then. Therefore, we have not set a day for bathrooms, but try to do the work regularly.
