While my kids were growing up, keeping the house clean and free of as many germs as possible was no easy feat. It was very much a lesson in learning what was important to clean and what wasn’t. So, I developed a system to help me clean up my entire home during the week so that the weekend would be free to relax and spend time with my family. This week, I will be sharing with you the tips to get your home clean without having to spend time over the weekend.
First, I determined what the priorities were in our home. Not everything needed cleaning every day. But, a few areas needed to be cleaned a few times a week, like the carpets and area rugs in the main living rooms.
Decide what your quickest tasks were for each room. Were the counters easy for you to clean? Were the dining area a quick clean after dinner? Did straightening up the playroom area help keep the area cleaned for the family?
Keep in mind, if you have others living in your home and you need help, this is a great opportunity to get them involved in age-appropriate chores. Below is a brief list of tasks for each age group.
Chores by Age Groups
3-5 Years Old Daily Tasks: Toddler
| Make bed |
| Take clothes to the laundry basket |
| Put toys away |
| Clean up toys in the playroom |
| Match Socks |
| Feed pets |
| Clear place after meals |
6-9 Years Old Daily Tasks: Elementary Schoolers
| Empty and load dishwasher |
| Set the table |
| Water plants |
| Clean up their room |
| Sweep Floor |
| Sort laundry |
| Wipe counter |
10-14 Years Old Daily Tasks: Middle schoolers
| Do laundry |
| Mow the lawn/pull weeds |
| Cook a meal |
| Wash a dish |
| Clean the bathroom |
| Clean floors |
15-18 years Old Daily Tasks: High schoolers
| Fold and put away laundry |
| Make lunch |
| Cook dinner |
| Take out the garbage |
| Iron their own clothes |
| Clean kitchen |
That’s not too bad, right? You can easily teach them how to do each chore and ask them to do it on certain days during the week. Leaving it up to them when it should get done may be good for some kids, but may not be effective for others. Give the child a deadline. And tell them that you expect it to be completed by that day every week. You will need to remind them of the tasks a few times in the beginning.
Now that you decided on some tasks for your kids. It’s time to make your own schedule during the week. Make sure you write down the tasks for each day on a piece of paper. By doing this, it will help you remember them until it becomes a habit.
Assign the room to clean on different days during the week. Limit scheduling cleaning on the weekend. It's important to add time for rest and being with family.
Cleaning Routine Checklist By Day
Monday is Bathroom Cleaning day.
Bathrooms get messy very quickly because we use it every day. So, inform everyone involved that they must pick up after themselves and put things in their rightful home, so when you are ready to clean the bathroom, there is little clutter in your way. Below is a list of things you need to do on this day.
Cleaning counters
Clean mirrors
Wipe toilets
Clean the shower and tub
Clean doorknobs and handles
Sweep and Mop floors
Clean vanity cabinet doors
Empty Trash cans
Wash towels, robes, and area rugs
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Tip: Keep all the bathroom cleaning supplies in the bathrooms. Each bathroom should have their cleaning supplies.
Tuesday is Living Room/Family Room/Dining Room Cleaning day.
Since these rooms are usually near each other, cleaning them on the same day will save you time. These common areas are easier to clean when there is little clutter. The night before, ask everyone to help put stuff away so the next day will be super easy for you. Below are the areas that should be cleaned on this day.
Wipe tables down.
Dust furniture.
Sweep, mop, and vacuum.
Straighten items.
Return items and toys to their home.
Cleaning the windows.
Clean under couch and chairs.
Wipe down baseboards.
Tip: Use large bins with lids so to store items efficiently, and you can gather the mess quickly.
Now you are already in the middle of the week. The week is going fast, isn't it?
Wednesday is Kitchen Cleaning day.
The kitchen will most likely be messy by this day of the week. It's a perfect time to clean it. Below are the areas that should be cleaned on this day.
Clean counters.
Clean the front of appliances to remove handprints.
Wipe down cabinets and doorknobs.
Straighten pantry.
Deep clean refrigerator by tossing old expired food products.
Clean sink, table, chairs, and stove.
Vacuum area rugs and clean tile floors.
Clean small appliances inside and out (for example microwave and toasters).
Tip: Clear out the pantry every month of items that have expired. Move them to an area to use first to remind you that they need to be used.
Thursday is Bedroom Cleaning day.
This should include all the bedrooms if possible. If your child has a messy room, ask them to straighten it up on Wednesday night so you will not waste time the next day. Below are the areas to clean on this day.
Vacuum rugs.
Put away the things that are left out.
Dust the furniture.
Straighten the closet and dresser drawers.
Dust and wipe down nightstands.
Clean under the bed.
Wipe down windows.
Dust curtains.
Clean ceiling fan blades.
Tip: Some tasks do not need to be completed each week. Make a note of the week you did the job, so you know when you need to do them again.
Friday is Random Cleaning Day.
This day will include all the other areas that you need to fill in for yourself. Some areas you could add are straightening up the garage, doing laundry, do yard work, clean out the car, sort mail, clean sheets, playroom, home office, or organize areas of your home.
Tip: Pick tasks that can be done within one hour of returning home to free up your Friday to spend with family.
Below is a FREE shareable Daily Cleaning Checklist for you keep and share!
By doing these tasks during the weekday or on the weekday evening, it will free up your weekend time. One hour a day is usually enough to do many of these daily tasks. If you find that some tasks take more time, schedule it for a time when you can do something else as well. For example, if you have to do laundry, do the bills at the same time and do them near where you do laundry. This will remind you to continue doing laundry in between the billing tasks.
Feel free to modify the tasks for your own purposes depending on your home and what your cleaning area priorities are.
Remember these chores can be done throughout the day when the kids are taking a nap or doing something else. You do not need to block out a chunk of time to do all the tasks at once if you don’t want to do that.
Visit these posts I found online that give you more tips on how to create a cleaning checklist.
The Ultimate Cleaning Checklist
The Ultimate Cleaning Schedule for Your Day, Week, Month, and Year
I hope this post gives you some direction on how to get you and your child's cleaning checklist organized for your home. Please leave a comment below on how you created your own cleaning checklist. We would love to hear from you.
Janet Schiesl
When my kids were young I had a cleaning schedule. My plan helped me to not get over whelmed, thinking I had to be cleaning all the time. Bathrooms were cleaned on a certain day and I didn't worry about them the rest of the time. When my boys got into middle school I started teaching them how to do laundry and cook. That age worked great for me, because they still were at home more, before they had jobs and could drive. My challenge was giving them responsibility and then not stepping in to fix things.
Linda Samuels
When we can involve our kids in helping with household chores, not only does it help the parents, but it teaches the kids important skills. Eventually they will be on their own, and if they didn't learn how to do some of these basics, it makes it harder for them to launch. I love how you broke down the chores by age group!
Julie Stobbe
I like the schedules you suggested for the children and then the schedule for the adults. For me that is the keys. You can tell children to clean but if they don't see the adults doing their part too the children are usually less cooperative. In our house if worked best for all of us to clean the houses together on Saturday morning. Then the rest of the weekend was for fun. The children had their daily and weekly chores too.
Sheri Steed
I like your emphasis on saving the weekend for family time. I think a lot of people tend to put off chores until the weekend, and then there isn't much time to relax. Breaking the cleaning up by area and day makes it easy to manage and stay on top of.
Ronni Eisenberg
Breaking cleaning tasks and chores down by age is so smart. It also encourages children to be more self-sufficient and feel like they’re part of the family team.
Do you have some simple cleaning products that you love to use? Like white vinegar, an all purpose cleaner.
I really liked your tip, ”Keep all the bathroom cleaning supplies in the bathrooms. Each bathroom should have their cleaning supplies.” It really saves so much time. Especially, when all we want to do is a quick wipe up.
Melanie
I LOVE your suggestions by age. My oldest will be 3 next August and I'm always thinking about ways to involve my kids in home keep up. She already helps me unload the dishwasher and wipes up spills on the floor.
Great post! I love you checklist too.
Diane N. Quintana
Sabrina, I love the way you broke tasks down by the day of the week. I agree it's so much easier to keep a home tidy and have time to do other fun things if you do a little cleaning and tidying up each day. Also, many hands make light work!
Seana Turner
I did pretty well with this when my children were small and had plenty of time, but it got harder as they got older. We have a pretty intense high school, and by the time my girls were there, I was doing more because I wanted them to get more sleep! It's great to see what chores are appropriate for which ages.