Sweeping

Recommended Age: 2 and ½ to 4 years

Level of Parent Involvement: Medium for the first presentation, then low-none after the child has been shown, they can sweep independently

Prerequisites

Materials

Broom
Dust pan and brush
Small box filled with pot pourri (refilled as needed) or small pieces of coloured scrap paper cut up into squares to act as a ‘dirt indicator’

Preparation

Steps

Invite the child, letting them know you are going to teach them how to do a very important job called ‘sweeping’
Show the child the indicator box and invite them to take one
Go with the child to find some dirt on the floor, invite the child to place the indicator there, telling them “this will show us where we are sweeping”
Show the child the broom and model how to carry the broom safely
Invite the child to bring the broom to the place where they placed the indicator

Take the broom from the child, use a back and forth sweeping motion so the bristles of the broom touch the dirt and the indicator, pushing the dirt towards the indicator
Show the child the dustpan and brush, model how to carry, the child may bring the dustpan and brush to the dirt and indicator
Crouch down, use your left hand to hold the dustpan
Position the dustpan behind the piece of dirt and the indicator
Move the dirt and the indicator with the brush into the dustpan using a rolling action of the wrist

Place the brush on the dustpan horizontally, holding the handle with one hand, the other hand holds the dustpan
Walk to the bin with the child
Use the brush to brush the dirt and indicator into the bin whilst slightly tilting the dustpan towards the bin
Place the brush back on top of the dustpan
Invite the child to find some dirt to sweep, leave the child to work independently

Variations

Notes

Should fluff get stuck on the broom show the child how to pick off and then wash hands.
For outside tools such as the outside broom or rake, may use a stone/pebble/stick as the indicator

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