The place is a mess and the parents are coming home soon? Eek! How do you get the kids to clean up...fast!? Challenge them to a clean-up contest. First, tell the kids how/what to clean up, assigning specific areas or tasks to each child. Then, tell them that whoever cleans up the fastest and the most throughly wins a prize – a small toy, healthy fruit snacks or control of the TV next time around. The kids will be motivated by the prize and love competing against each other. Just make sure they don't get TOO competitive. Ready...set...CLEAN UP!

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