I had thought that by the time my kids were 8 they would be making their beds everyday. This is soooo not happening. And i don't blame them, I keep their beds pushed up against the wall because i fear them rolling out, and because the rooms are small so there isn't much room. It takes a good bit of my muscles to move the mattress so i can tuck the sheets and comforter in. so mama's can you weigh in, what age were you kids when they started making their beds, and what did you have to do to get them to that point. Thanks.
They also freak out about it not being pushed tight against the wall. I actually forgot about that. right now I"m trying to teach them to pull up the sheet first then the quilt, but if not having the top sheet is going to make the difference maybe we'll try it. Maybe DS's quilt is to big someone made it for him as a gift and it hangs down way low on both sides.
LOVE the sleeping bag type trick. I guess this means i need to be helping to make sure the oneside stays tucked in. instead of assuming they could do it all themselves. expectations realigned. Thank YOU!!
we just dont tuck it in that far, since it's up against the bed. She tucks it as far as she can (she's 4) and we call it good.
I am from the Netherlands where everyone has a comforter in a comforter cover, no flat sheets. It is also our way to open the bed in the morning and let it air out all day by throwing the comforter open over the foot rail of the bed. I do not understand the American need to make beds look all tight and tucked when there is nobody in the room. On top of that you are closing all that sweatiness and gassiness from the night into the sheets if you close it up. Get them a comforter and cover (or if your comforter fits in your washing machine you can just wash the whole thing) and a fitted sheet on the bottom and then there is no problem. When they get home and want to sit on the bed they can close the comforter over the bed to keep outside clothes off the inner sleep surface.
Pull the bed away from the wall a little. If they are 8, they won't fall out. Don't require them to tuck the sheets under the mattress on the side closest to the wall. Or at all. The comforter will cover it.
Honestly, we don't even have flat sheets on our kids' beds. It's pretty easy with just a comforter.
My daughter is 5 1/2 and she makes her bed. It is pulled away from the wall just enough for her (or I) to get back there and pull the sheets up. Now, she isn't able to CHANGE the sheets herself yet, but she pulls the sheet and comforter up every day and puts the pillows on neatly. The other day, I went in there to make the bed and if I didn't know better, I would have thought I already did it. She did as good a job on it as I would have! I say let them try to do it. So what if it isn't perfect, as long as they make an effort and do their best. The only reason I "touch up" the job she does right now is because our house is on the market and it needs to be perfect. But, as soon as we move, it's her chore and practice makes perfect. Good luck! Hope this helped.
My son is 6 and makes his own bed. All I have on his bed is a comforter and a pillow. It's easy and basic, so he gets it. When he gets older, we'll add the flat sheet under the comforter and do it properly. But for now, I keep it simple. Plus making the bed is my least favorite chore. If I get real lazy and don't feel like laying the comforter on the bed, I fold the comforter in half.
My six year old very neatly makes her bed. She sleeps in a twin bed, which is pushed against a wall. She has a top sheet and a comforter (not something heavy or too big...it really needs to be the proper size.) She knows to pull the sheet up first, then the comforter (and during the winter, there's a blanket in between.)
My trick is that when I open her bed at night, I fold the outside upper corner down (like you would a sleeping bag that was zipped) and leave the side next to the wall tucked in. Then the covers don't get all messy through the night, and there isn't an issue of her moving the mattress out...that side stays tucked in. It works!
your making it harder than it has to be. take the sheet off the bed. kids don't care if they have a top sheet. just use the bottom one and a comforter. let them pull the comforter up and wala its done. if you make it into a power struggle to have it the way you want it your never going to win this one. pick the battles so that you win the war lol
I never made my bed as a child, never as an adult.......I will make it up if I know I will have company that may enter my bedroom (not very likely, but did happen when we first bought the house and were showing it off to family and friends). I will throw the comforter up on occasion to make it look better, but usually I am of the mind that I'm just getting back in it later anyway, so why waste the time........
My parents always make their bed and because my room was otherwise neat and tidy (think seriously over organized and almost OCD clean, lol), they never really got upset that my bed wasn't made. They did request it made on occasions when others were visiting or when we were "showing" the house during the time we were trying to sell it and I did so.
I plan to let my daughter and son do the same as long as the rest of their stuff is neat and tidy. Just me......
I know I didn't really answer your question, but maybe just teaching your children the basics and letting them do it the best they can is enough at this point. Why stress over something so small? Also, why waste time and energy doing it for them, when at 8 they are old enough to at least pull the covers up, pull the comforter up and straighten any pillows and stuffies that exist?
Our daughter has a daybed and so it has a whole side that is impossible to get to, so she just pulls the comforter over it and adds all the pillows.
Up at college she says she does the same thing, because otherwise she would have to move her twin bed away from the wall every morning to make it up.. and that is "not gonna happen"
hee,hee
I used blanket covers no top sheets. That made it easy to throw the covers over the beds. I never ever had bedspreads. I hate them. A skirt and a fitted sheet and the blanket cover made it an easy job for my kids. They were about 9 when they made their beds.
my kids have been making their beds since age 3. it isn't about making them pretty, my 10 y/o son still makes a sloppy bed, although my 8 y/o daughter could enlist tomorrow and pass inspection, lol. All I ever asked was that the blankets were pulled up, pillows and stuffed animals neatly at the top, and nothing hanging on the floor. Skills like making the bed take time, and practice, you can't expect it to be perfect, with most kids it never will be, even some adults hate to make a bed, but if they know you appreciate the effort and you help them learn how they are more likely to at least try every day.
