10 Ways To Involve Your Child In Home Decorating Activities
By Guest Contributor Tim Sparke
Image: Shutterstock
A family home is always better when everyone is involved together and, when it comes to decorating the home, it helps to involve the children. Working with your family to create your home is a rewarding experience. Dull, boring chore become enriching experiences between parent and child. However, children need supervision, motivation and engagement, while parents need something stress free.
1. Involve Them In The Planning
Children are always more engaged when something is their idea, or at least partially their own concept. By including them at the start, they won't consider this another chore set by mum or dad. When it comes to home decorating, involve them in color options and features, asking for their opinions and thoughts.
2. Shopping
Similarly, you can take the same approach when shopping for supplies. This involves the child in the process even further, letting them see the wall colors, floor coverings and furniture you are considering. Once they see these items, they'll have a greater reason to be excited about the project.
3. Paint The Walls
Painting the walls is a boring task for anyone, but children will often relish the chance to do something with their parents. Furthermore, with non-hazardous paint and supplies, your child can learn patience and control. Furthermore, try to involve children on the early layers as, this way, you can paint over any mistakes. Or simply place a chalkboard on the wall and let them “paint” the wall with you.
4. Art Projects
Speaking of painting, why not have the children create something for the home? Once you know what the house will look like, you can ask the kids to create a painting in similar colors. Not only will this give you free art, it will keep the children busy while you do some of the more important tasks.
5. Rewards And Boredom Breakers
Children, especially those of a young age, have a short attention span. As such, you're going to need to motivate them on longer tasks. Try promising small rewards every so often, or breaking big activities up with lunch, nap time and other general breaks away.
6. Give Responsibility
Do you children like to be put in charge of things? This is a fantastic way to focus a child's attention. Give them something simple, such as cleaning a floor or tidying up, and make it their sole responsibility - just remember to reward them for it, too! This frees up some of your busy time and lets the kids know they are trusted.
7. Big Group Activities
I often find there are tasks near the end, such as placing furniture, that require the whole family. Mum and dad can lift the heavy couch while the children help direct and guide them. The same goes for removing unnecessary items, such as old cupboards or tables. Not only does this get the job done faster, it's a bonding experience for the whole family. Also, when you decide to reuse or recycle some of them, it might be a good lesson for your kids how to adopt an eco-friendly lifestyle.
8. Teaching
Decorating, like many activities, can be a real learning experience for children. By explaining a process, such as how to paint and add layers, you can teach important lessons to your children while having fun at the same time! In other words, don't just tell your family what to do, as they will be more supportive if you explain how and why. Also, once you are done with decorating itself, you might naturally give your kids another eco lesson trying to green-clean the mess. In this way you can save water and energy, and still have a decorated, clean house with happy kids!
9. Personal Touches
Allow your children to put a personal touch on things with name signs and other items. Not only will this allow them to express their creativity, it lets them claim their own spaces (such as bedrooms) or have a greater influence on communal space. This is their home, too, so allow them to make some of these choices.
10. Plan Ahead
Finally, always plan your activities ahead of schedule. Makes sure you have everything you need and that your children know you plan to spend time with them. This makes things easier on the actual day, ensures children don't have other ideas and helps make things go as smoothly as possible.
In short, the goal here is to keep children attentive, but engaged and happy. Kids enjoy being part of the family and redecorating a house is the perfect way to do this. Whether it’s painting a wall, choosing decorations or even arts and crafts, there's always something to do together. If you have any ideas of your own, share them with us and tell us what you think!
Tim Sparke is a devoted family man with a hands-on approach. When he’s not enjoying the wonderful moments of being a husband and father, he enjoys his hobbies of writing and gardening. He practices his trade as the CEO of 4 Pumps.