Teaching your children general housekeeping can be tricky in and of itself. Kids tend to use a little bit extra of everything, including a lot more soap and paper towels than needed, which can really hurt your wallet over time. Especially if you have a big family with a lot of kids, where it’s hard to even find who the culprit is, while you’re figuring out where all the dish soap that you just refilled went.
Luckily, there are a few simple tips and tricks you can use to teach your kids to save money while still keeping the house clean and kids happy to help. And the lessons are universal and good for all the children to learn! Here are three frugal housekeeping tips to teach your kids and get them in the habit of doing.
Towels Over Paper
Teach your children to skip the paper towels and use a dish rag or small towel to clean with instead of store-bought wipes or paper towels. This way they can save money by reusing the towel instead of buying multiple rolls of paper towels over and over again. Not only are towels more durable, but they can soak up spills easier and be reused almost immediately. All they need is a quick rinse with water and they’re ready to be used again. You can even teach them to recycle and repurpose items like old t-shirts and turn them into new cleaning rags.
Simple Soap & Water
Cleaning products and speciality soaps can be expensive. Teach your kids that less is more when it comes to scrubbing down stains and dirt by using some simple inexpensive liquid soap and water. Often times, dirt can be scrubbed off by just using water and a little elbow grease. You can even teach your children to make their own cleaning solution by mixing vinegar, lime, and water together. It’s inexpensive, multipurpose, and safe to use on most surfaces.
Essential Oils
Cleanliness is often accompanied by harsh scents or abrasive fragrances. Much better scents like essential oils can be used in a variety of ways including in your cleaning. Have your kids pick out their favorites and then mix them with homemade cleaning solutions for a bonus marvelous fragrance. They can be used to spruce up a room, used for health and beauty, and even to relax. Essential oils like doTERRA products are easy to use so you can rest assured your kids will learn to handle them easily and quickly.
With so many chores to do around the house, it would be great if children could help out and do their part. Use all these chores as opportunities to teach your children about ways they can save money, recycle, and practice better housekeeping. Always remember that housekeeping is a lifelong process and can take months or even years to acquire the proper skills. Once your children have mastered them, you will find yourself saving more time and more money, all while spending more time together.