What is loads of fun and never ends? Laundry! Just kidding about the fun part. Doing laundry does seem to take up quite a bit of time within mommy life. My kids seem to be particularly talented at creating laundry. I’ve begun teaching my girls (ages 3 and 5-years-old) how to help with gathering dirty laundry, folding their clean laundry and putting it away in their drawers. Here are some tips to teach kids laundry skills and help them get involved with the family laundry routine.
Give Kids Organized Clothing Drawers
If kids know where their clothing is supposed to go, they can easily put clean clothing away. My kids’ dresser drawers are organized into “tops”, “bottoms” and “pajamas/socks/underwear”. When I finish folding a clean load of laundry, my girls can easily put their clothes away. We even make it a game to teach kids laundry skills; my kids have fun making trips back and forth to their dresser and asking me if I have something new for them to put away.
Teach Kids How to Fold Laundry
Even toddlers can learn how to fold towels. My 3-year-old can use this handy Tidy Snap clothing organization kit to fold her own shirts and dresses. All you have to do is lay the clothing item on the plastic board and fold the sides over. Tidy Snap also includes slap bracelet-type bands to place around rolled up clothing items to keep them tidy and organized in a dresser drawer. This creative laundry folding system encourages kids to get involved with the family laundry routine and learn important life skills.
My kids have fun rolling up their clothing and tidying up their dresser drawers. (or putting the bands around their ankles)
Tidy Snap was invented by a mom and keeps clothes rolled up and ready to go. Tidy Snap bands spring closed around your clothes, holding them neatly rolled up. You can fit more in each drawer and conveniently see everything!
Train Kids to Use their Laundry Basket
We have a laundry basket in each child’s room; one of my kids’ jobs is to keep their floor clean by picking up dirty laundry. I teach them to put their clothes in the hamper when they take an outfit off. Even young kids can help keep their room clean with dirty laundry organized in the hamper, ready for wash day.
Schedule a Laundry Day
Laundry day something I need to implement. I’ve been doing endless laundry any day of the week or getting burned out and waiting 2 weeks (and running out of clothes). This summer I plan to schedule a weekly laundry day to collect all dirty clothes hampers, sort clothing into piles of light and dark colors, and wash, dry and put the clean clothing away. A haphazard laundry routine worked for me with fewer kids but now with 3 active kids, our family needs a scheduled laundry day. I’m excited to get organized and eliminate the piles of dirty (or clean) laundry! Kids can help put laundry in the washer and pour in our natural laundry soap, a hands-on way to teach kids laundry skills.
How do you encourage your kids to help with laundry? You can minimize the laundry load by teaching kids to be careful at mealtimes or dressing children in swimsuits to play outside in the yard. Family fun often creates laundry but also encourages opportunities to get organized!
Hi, I’m Katie! I live with my husband and 3 kids in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. I love Jesus, coffee, creative projects, taking photos and traveling. I’ve previously worked as a web designer, journalist and barista. I hope you enjoy our creative projects and family adventures!
Wow! I think this is fantastic to train your children to do their laundry with fun techniques! Way to go, Mommy!
I didn’t know that these straps exist! What a fun way to teach kids laundry. I definitely think it’s very important to teach them laundry skills from very early age. They are going to be well put together persons! They train self-discipline and that’s very important in life for school,… Read more »
This is very very good. I have never thought kids can do their own laundry and clothes folding with such stuff. The bright colours definitely make (even Me!) want to do laundry! hahaa~
I love it, it’s like an enjoyable 101 for kids! I just realized that the mechanics of folding are already evident there and this whole idea by Tidy Snap can really open up a lot of potential for helping all kinds of “chores”.
I still have such a long way ahead to arrive to this level of organization! Laundry is 100% the bane of my existence. My current laundry schedule is “wash right now, fold eventually, iron… never gonna happen”. I don’t know if I could train my children when I am not… Read more »
your kids are so cute! loved these tips! I think the fact that taking this as an oportunity to establish responsible habits is just pure genius and parenting done right!
This is amazing! I wish my mom would have taught me how to do all this so when I went to college I wouldn’t be clueless and struggling.
Great suggestions for teaching kids laundry skills! You make it so fun 🙂
This is such a lovely post, what a great idea to teach laundry skills at a young age. I love the gadgets you have too for helping organise the clothes.
OMG! This is so brilliant. I love it and can see how it gets kids happy about getting involved.
This is so lovely post!This is beautiful photos!Thank u for sharing this!
Wow, I didnt know there are tools to help kids learn howto fold laundry. Glad that you share it here. I strongly think kids should start to learn to do housework as young as 3 years old. It is best time for them to learn and be responsible little people.