Mar 25, 2025
Children’s sense of responsibility often begins with the small, everyday tasks they are given, and one of the most foundational ways they learn responsibility is through taking care of their belongings and toys.
By teaching children to care for their possessions, you’re helping them develop key life skills that extend far beyond just keeping things neat.
When children wash their own bike or scooter, they learn the importance of taking care of their belongings. This is a great opportunity to teach them that maintaining and cleaning their possessions is part of responsibility. It helps foster a sense of ownership as they see that their efforts lead to something positive—the bike or scooter looking clean and well-maintained.
Give you child a sponge or scrubbing brush and a bucket of soapy water to wash their bike or scooter. If you have an old toothbrush, this can be helpful to get dirt out of the tyres and joints. Once it is clean give them a cloth or towel to dry it.
Let your child help you to wash your car. While you wash the car, provide your child with a sponge and bucket of soapy water, or a broom so that they can scrub the driveway with soapy water. Talk about why we need to clean things and the benefits of looking after our belongings.