teach your kids how to do laundry: become wash warriors

My kids are learning how to do laundry.

And they love it.  Love it.

No joke.

And I want to dance!

At 10, 8, and 6 years old, I think it’s about time to teach kids how to do laundry. Don’t you?

Actually, it’s more important than we realize that we all teach our kids how to do laundry–and the earlier, the better. There’s no reason our kids should head off into the wilds of ‘real life’ without having mastered this essential skill.

And honestly? There’s no reason that laundry needs to be Mom’s job or Dad’s job. It takes a lot of time, and we all wear the clothes–so it should be the family’s job.

The laundry, like many chores, can be fun. It’s all in the delivery.

And having pretty decent appliances helps, too. We have Whirlpool to thank for that, as we have fallen hard for our Whirlpool Duet.

Here’s the skinny. . .

• Teach Your Kids How to do Laundry–Become Wash Warriors:

Maddy, Owen, and Cora have put their clean clothes into their drawers and closet for a while now, and though Cora does need help, they do pretty well with it.

Aside from the occasional ‘drawer check’ when we make sure clothes are still folded and in  some semblance of order, we kind of let them go with it.

But after our new washer and dryer were delivered last month, my husband and I decided that it was time for our kids to take on a more meaningful role in our family’s laundry. They were going to become–with our help–Wash Warriors.

We started cold turkey. Out of the blue. One totally random Sunday.

Okay. Everyone downstairs for a lesson in how to rock the laundry and use our fancy new washer and dryer. Dad and I are finished doing all of the laundry. Today? You are all becoming Wash Warriors. 

It wasn’t really enticing enough for them to drop what they were doing and head to the laundry room. So with a few more ‘tugs’ and a little bit of unplugging, I rallied the troops and gave them their first laundry lesson.

You guys have it good. You have great lives, doing lots of awesome activities, and your social life is pretty much awesome. And because all three of you are smart, strong, and healthy, it’s time you became Wash Warriors. 

Mom. C’mon, Mom. What do you mean? was the collective groan from my small army.

You’re going to be doing the laundry. It’s a job for bigger kids, and you’re bigger kids. It’s a job that requires some patience, and understanding of technology–because you’ll be controlling these two fancy appliances (I patted our Duets). And not every kid gets to do that.   You get me?

They did.

I showed them step-by-step how to rock the laundry. I literally walked them through everything that first day, and they got it. They liked it. They liked pressing the buttons, moving the clothes, and turning the knobs.

So with the help of my handy-dandy We are Wash Warriors poster, they seemed to manage fine.

Want to print it out? Here you go: teach kids how to do laundry 

Owen even asked me to leave the laundry room so he could ‘do his work in peace’.   I did not, but eventually I will.  Once they prove to me that they can work the machines.

We’ve just started using the Wash Squad app to keep things fun and exciting, and so far? It rocks.  Will definitely share more later.

Why has this worked?  Why are my kids digging the fact that they’re ‘Wash Warriors’?

• We’re empowering our kids to take on a ‘big’ job around the house;
• We’re showing them that we trust them;
• We’re making them active stakeholders in an important household chore– their clothes!
• We’re tying their Wash Warrior duties to their allowance and Gem Jars;
• We’re making laundry FUN–silly names help!–and who doesn’t want to be a ‘warrior’?
• We have broken down a big job (laundry) into three more manageable jobs: washing, drying, and putting away
• We’re setting very specific, clear expectations with jobs and have a reminder sign close;
• We’re allowing them to use electronics, which they love.

So that’s it. Looking forward to sharing more in the next few weeks.

How does your family manage the laundry? Do the kids help? Run the show? Do tell!

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also part of this Wash Warrior series:

(click on the image to visit the post!)

fyi: This is a sponsored post, written as part of the Whirlpool Ambassador program. As always, opinions and ideas are my own, influenced only by my experience as an educator and parent and my three little wash warriors.