Who doesn't struggle to get their kids to tidy up?
What if we tried making it fun by tickling their competitive streak, firing up their agility and maybe having a good laugh while we're at it… ?
Ciao-Bazar-Michael Jordan
Classic: put the Ciao Bazar in the middle of the room, and start lobbing toys into it — one step away from the target, then two steps, then three, and so on. You can do the same with dirty socks into the laundry basket. The catch: it can take a while. Especially if you haven't exactly got a Michael Jordan at home, but more of a total-air-shot merchant. In that case, you can fall back on the Ciao-Bazar Usain Bolt below — less technical.
Ciao-Bazar-Hide-and-Seek
All the red toys have to disappear (i.e. get tidied into the Ciao Bazar), then the blue ones, the multicoloured ones, and so on. You can spice things up with a competitive twist: whoever hides/tidies the most in a given colour wins… well, that's for you to figure out. In our house, you win the right to pick the bedtime story. Or choose Friday evening's cartoon. Or, at its simplest, a little sweet (not endorsed by the dental health association, but let's be honest, it's the one that actually works).
Ciao-Bazar-Usain Bolt
Even more classic than the Michael Jordan, the famous stopwatch challenge. Every day, you beat your best time. On your marks, get set, go, tidy. Meanwhile, you can track their time while scrolling through Instagram, punctuating the tidying with encouragement and tips — a bit like a game show host cheering on a contestant: "YES, GREAT STUFF, OVER THERE ON THE RIGHT, THERE'S STILL A SPIDERMAN, UNDER THE DESK, QUICK!"
Plus, it gets them working on left, right, and spatial awareness — all that good stuff. Though, let's be honest, it only works for so long (pun very much intended), or not at all if you've got more of an artist than a competitor on your hands.
NB: fancy trying a Ciao Hide-and-Seek in that case?
Ciao Bazar Pac-Man
One child or parent plays Pac-Man: they hold the Ciao Bazar in their arms, while another picks up toys and throws them in one by one as fast as possible.
Pac-Man tries to gobble up the toys with the Ciao Bazar, moving around as needed. Watch out for collateral damage — a toy car to the shin is no joke.
Or you could put on a Pac-Man knight's helmet.
Ciao-Bazar-1-2-3-freeze
Everyone knows the rules, right?
Here, you have to tidy up super fast during the "1-2-3-look-away!" of the person counting with their face to the wall — and freeze the moment they turn around. Anyone caught moving has to be the counter next. Which, honestly, is more fun than tidying. Best to have at least two kids, because being the one picking up toys while your child counts is significantly less entertaining on your own.
Ciao-Bazar-Simon Says
Simon Says tidying goes like this: "Simon says: put away the little cars." Then: "Put away the books." And bam — the trap. Cue a role swap. "Your turn to be Simon." The problem? When you've got a clever one who's worked out that being Simon is way more fun than tidying — and starts losing on purpose.
Happy tidying, lucky ones — and above all, have a good laugh ;-)!
