• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Live Like You Are Rich

on any income...

  • Finances
    • Save Money
    • Make Money
    • The Credit Game
    • Couponing
    • Tips & Warnings
    • Financial Fitness Bootcamp Course
  • The Rich Life
    • Love
    • Pregnancy & Postpartum
    • Parenting
    • Faith
    • Other Riches
  • My Home is My Castle
    • Preparedness
    • Organization & Cleaning
    • Efficiency
    • Interior Design
    • Home Updates
    • Home One
    • Home Two
    • Home Three
  • Luxuries
    • DIY’s & Crafts
    • Holidays
  • Gourmet Recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Lunch
    • Starters, Soups & Salads
    • Dinner
    • Desserts
    • Smoothies & Drinks
  • Travel
  • My Book

How I Get My Toddlers to Do Their Own Laundry

January 3, 2018 By: Anita

Share to Your Social Media

  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Pin

I have regularly involved my children in doing laundry for over a year now. Starting at about age 2 their laundry duties have gradually increased. Now that they are 3 and 5, they are doing the majority of their own laundry every week. 

Their duties include:

  • Putting dirty laundry in the hamper.
  • Helping me load the washer.

To be safe and avoid a big mess, I pour in the detergent. This helps cut down on waste too, which helps save money! You all know I love to save money on anything I can, so I like to use coupons paired with a sale when I buy detergent. This is a great way to save. Right now, Tide HE 100 oz. Liquid is on Rollback at Walmart for $10.77 (regularly $11.97). Combine that with the current $2 Tide brandSAVER coupon for a final price of only $8.77, or less than 9 cents per ounce! The brandSAVER coupon can be found online at https://www.pgeveryday.com/ and is valid for in-store purchases through 1/13/18. 

  How I Get My Toddlers to Do Their Own Laundry

Now, back to how I get my kids to do their own laundry.

After the clothes are loaded in the wash:

  • My kids help me push the start button. They love the buttons!
  • Then, they help me move the laundry to dryer, put in a dryer sheet, and push the buttons again.
  • After the dryer is done, we unload it into a pile.

Once the pile has grown a bit (at least 4 clean loads), we fold laundry. I incentivize them by rewarding them with earnings.

  • My five—year—old folds the big towels and earns .25 cents for folding them all (there are usually at least 10).
  • My three—year—old folds all the hand towels, rags, dish towels, etc. She earns .25 cents for doing that (usually there are 20+ smaller towels).
  • Then they earn another quarter each by folding and putting away their own clothes. I do my laundry while I oversee them doing theirs.
  • They know how to put their shirts on hangers, how to fold their shorts, pants and pajamas, and how to stack their underwear in piles. I’ve tried teaching them how to pair and fold over socks, but they are both still learning this technique, so I usually do that.
  • Then we go put their clothes in their closets, drawers, and totes.
  • The final step is that they put their earnings in their piggy banks.

When we started out, I began teaching them in baby steps. I made it fun for them to load the laundry in our front loading washer and press Start, and left it at that. After a week or so, I taught them how to put the wet clothes in the dryer, add a dryer sheet, and press Start. Another few weeks went by, and then I showed them how to fold small towels.

During this process, I gave them a lot of positive affirmation when they tried to do it correctly. I continued teaching them little by little so they wouldn’t get overwhelmed. I made my son feel like a big boy when he learned to fold large towels and I still praise him especially when he folds the blanket towels. I supervise them both throughout the process and use as much positive affirmation as I can.

I also remind them they are earning money for something they really want. They’ve worked to earn a lot of different things (a scooter, a hammock swing, tickets to an aquarium, etc.). Some days they are less willing than others. There are times when I feel like it may be easier to do it all myself, but they usually take an active role without me really having to coax them.

Many hands do make light work! They help me get laundry done very quickly. Yesterday, I walked past the laundry room and saw them as they (without me asking) unloaded the washer, put the items in the dryer, put in a dryer sheet, and pressed Start. It was so cute! My 5—year—old is very tall and so smart—it was actually fun to see him take the initiative and help out with the laundry without asking. Luckily, it was a load where everything was supposed to be put in the dryer—if it had been my clothes I would’ve snuck back in and hung the clothes I wanted and restarted it without him knowing. It was just so fun to see them being proactive. Of course, you need to be safe in this process and set good rules. I’ve taught my kids about safety concerning the washer and dryer and never to get inside them. I’m around to supervise the majority of the laundry chores as well.

It’s so great to have help with chores around the house. I’m a big proponent of involving my children (even though they are very young) in household duties. I wrote a post on other chores I involve them in here.

What tips do you have in involving your kids in household chores such as laundry?

LiveLikeYouAreRich.com For other ‘rich living tips’ please subscribe, like me on Facebook, and follow me on Pinterest and Instagram.

How I Get My Toddlers to Do Their Own Laundry.jpg

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Tide at Walmart. The opinions and text are all mine.

 

Related posts:

15 Inexpensive Laundry Hacks That Will Save You Hundreds How-to-Teach-Your-Toddlers-to-Work,-Earn-Money,-and-Become-FrugalthmbfHow to Teach Your Toddlers to Work, Earn Money, and Become Frugal How to Make Money From Home by Doing Laundry for Others via Laundry Care
Previous Post: « Feed the Hungry: Stockings for the Homeless #LightTheWorld
Next Post: How to Become a Financial New You »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Amy @ Geniani says

    May 10, 2019 at 10:41 am

    Nice and useful article. I want to teach my kids to do laundry too. It seems not so hard as it can be 🙂 I will follow your tips and see what happens 🙂
    Thank you for sharing your experience 🙂

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Anita Fowler
Pinterest Facebook Twitter Youtube Gmail Gmail RSS

Most Popular





Footer

anita_livelikeyouarerich

How to live a rich life on any income. Stay-at-Home Mom to 3 👦👶👶 Author 📖. Blogger 💻. Christian 🌟. #livelikeyouarerich #LivingRichTips

Family & Finances & Food-Anita
This lemon chicken piccata is lightly infused with This lemon chicken piccata is lightly infused with lemon, garlic, herbs, and balanced out with a little butter.⁣
⁣
Find the link in my bio or head to our website and search, Slow Cooker Lemon Chicken Piccata.⁣
⁣
https://livelikeyouarerich.com/slow-cooker-lemon-chicken-piccata/⁣
.⁣
.⁣
.⁣
#lemonchicken #chickenpiccata #chickenrecipes #chickenrecipe #piccata #healthyrecipesideas #easyrecipes #recipeoftheday #dinnerrecipes #dinnerrecipe
Resurrection Easter Dessert Rolls has an amazing f Resurrection Easter Dessert Rolls has an amazing flavor. They are a cross between a buttery flakey roll and a sweet cinnamon roll. Delicious! I made these rolls with and without Nutella. Although both were great I liked the Nutella version best.⁣
⁣
Find the link in my bio or head to our website and search, Resurrection Easter Dessert Rolls. ⁣
⁣
https://livelikeyouarerich.com/resurrection-easter-dessert-rolls/⁣
.⁣
.⁣
.⁣
#easterdessert #easterdesserts #resurrectionrolls #dessertrecipe #dessertrecipes #desserttable #desserttables #eastersunday #rolls #sweetcorner
Reading with a child is a great bonding experience Reading with a child is a great bonding experience and encourages imagination and intellectual growth. Book Themed Easter Baskets are a great way to promote learning and literacy… and of course, make kids happy.⁣
⁣
Find the link in my bio or head to our website and search, Book Themed Easter Basket. ⁣
⁣
https://livelikeyouarerich.com/book-themed-easter-baskets/⁣
.⁣
.⁣
.⁣
#easterbaskets #easterbasketstuffers #bookforkids #easterbasketideas #easterbooks #giftideasforkids ⁣
#creativeideas #ontheblog #lifestyleblog
🍓𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘄𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗪𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗹𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗲🍓⁣
⁣
The strawberries are deliciously sweet, the lemon juice adds a tiny bit of tartness, the cream cheese smooths out the dish with its creaminess, and the waffle adds heartiness to every bite. ⁣
⁣
Find the link in my bio or head to our website and search, Strawberry Cheesecake Waffle. ⁣
⁣
https://livelikeyouarerich.com/strawberry-cheesecake-waffle-recipe/⁣
.⁣
.⁣
.⁣
#strawberrycheesecakewaffle #strawberrycheesecake #waffles #wafflelover #waffle #easyrecipe #easyrecipesathome  #strawberrys #breakfastrecipes #wafflesforbreakfast #healthybreakfastideas #healthybreakfast_ #healthybreakfastrecipes #healthybreakfasts #healthybreakfastidea #breakfastideas
There are few things I enjoy eating more than brea There are few things I enjoy eating more than bread. Specifically fresh, homemade rolls still hot from the oven. This Homemade Freezable Roll recipe is my absolute favorite, not only because it is wonderful to eat straight out of the oven, but because it also freezes amazingly well. Find the link in my bio and search for Homemade Roll.
.
.
.
.
#homemaderolls #breadroll #breadrolls #lovecooking #easyrecipes #bakingfromscratch #bakingbread #bakingisfun #bakingcooking #bakingathome #bakingideas #easyrecipesathome #easyrecipe
Learn time-tested fantastic cleaning methods for y Learn time-tested fantastic cleaning methods for your house from these 15 Cleaning Hacks your Grandma May Have Not Shared With You. Find the link in my bio and search for 15 Cleaning Hacks your Grandma.
.
.
.
.
#cleaningtips #cleaninghacks #cleaninghouse #cleaningtipsandtricks #cleaninghack #cleaningproducts #cleaningday #cleaningtip #cleaningoutthefridge #housecleaning #carpetcleaning #cleaningredients #whitevinegar #bathroomcleaning
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Links

  • About Me
  • Contact Me
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertising/Media/Marketing Opportunities on LiveLikeYouAreRich.com

Disclosure Policy

Affiliate links may be used in this post. Printing a coupon or ordering a product through this link may result in a commission, which helps pay for the cost of running this site and keeps the content free. Read my full disclosure policy here.

Copyright © 2021