There are a few things you need to know about children bathing together. These are things you should know because when done without care it can become a recipe for disaster. There is nothing wrong with bathing your little ones below the age of 5 together. It is when they start to clock 6-7, or when the older child decides they’re too big for bathing with the ‘baby,’ that you need to consider putting a stop to the co-bathing routine. It can be a wonderful opportunity for the children to bond but it can turn into a nightmare if the children get too rambunctious. So, here is what you need to know about children bathing together.
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Health Care Concerns For Children Bathing Together
You need to ensure that the health of one sibling is not compromised due to the other’s illness. Make sure that both children are healthy and that none of them has any infections. It is easy to overlook this, considering they are both your kids. You may figure that if one has a cold, the others will get it anyway, but it is best not to share the germs during a bath. It is also possible that the child who is ill will not welcome having a livelier partner in the tub and would prefer to bathe quietly and alone.
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Using It As Motivation
When you have kids growing up together, these children bathing together could be used to your advantage. This way you could easily start teaching your kids to clean themselves. You could give one of them a sponge and let them imitate what you do to the second one. The next time you bathe them, then it would be the other kid’s turn to imitate. This way, they get excited that you trust them enough to let them do on their own. They may not come out perfectly clean, but give them praise for the effort. Give them compliments. This will certainly help them bond as siblings but also teach them empathy (Hey! You’re rubbing too hard!)
Settling Disputes Between Children Bathing Together
Whenever there are siblings, there is always sure to be a dispute, especially children bathing together. You don’t have to stop them from bathing together because they are quarreling. Use this medium to understand them better. Even though you cannot completely stop them from having disagreements in the future, what they talk about during the bath can teach you a lot about their personalities. Because it is nearly impossible to fake it, you will know instantly if they are on good terms or not once they get in to have their baths. Ask them what the problem is and listen. However, make it perfectly clear that there is no roughhousing allowed in the tub.
Bathing Supplies Of Children Bathing Together
It isn’t advisable for children bathing together to share certain bathing supplies. Though they bathe together, make sure each kid has their bathing supplies. This includes individual sponges, washcloths and towels. Different types of soaps won’t help much, but if your children have different kinds of hair – one very curly for instance – it may be a good idea to get different shampoos and conditioners or detanglers. You can purchase different colors of these items so that they can easily identify who owns which. Another thing to do is get each kid a little bathroom container for putting their things in after bathing. They should not keep their things in the same container.
Encouraging Interaction
You should encourage interactions between the children bathing together during the bath. These memories are to be looked back upon with fondness, not as some awkward childhood experience. Ensure to make that so. Do not let the atmosphere dry out. It should be fun and lively. Talk. Talk to them about their school, talk to them about each other, let them also talk freely. You’ll be surprised how much information you get from them during this time. Because they most likely won’t feel pressured to pretend at this time. Remember, the more enjoyable the whole process is for the two of them, the more beneficial it is.
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Play Games
You can also introduce games. There are certain games that children bathing together are sure to enjoy. For younger children, you could play games like peek-a-boo, and coloring. ‘I Spy’ is also a great game for the tub full of toys. This becomes even more exciting when the child has a partner to play with. But, you must make sure that each of them has their toys. The toys should also be enough to go around. You should also pay equal attention to the two of them. If they are making wall drawings, then appreciate both of their artworks equally. Do not let one feel left out.
Setting Ground Rules For Children Bathing Together
Ensure to set ground rules. No playing with the other persons bathing supplies, no sharing bathing supplies, and no fighting. Also, the routine of children bathing together is meant to be fun, so no grumpy faces. Gently teach them these rules and also how to respect each other. Once they can respect each other from an early age, it becomes easier as they grow older. Ground rules also let the children bathing together understand that not everything is okay. They start to learn about boundaries early. This makes it easier for them to understand when you make the boundaries stricter.
It Mustn’t Be Regular
Children bathing together is beneficial, but nobody said it had to be regular. You don’t always have to bathe them together. You could do so twice a week, and the rest of the time bathe them individually. This allows you to interact and bond with them individually during bath time. Another importance of this spacing is that you get to have conversations with your little ones. One might tell you they don’t like bathing together with the other (they might not do so when together). It is also with this space of time that you would be able to quickly identify when there is a change in behavior the next time you bath them together.
Opposite Gender
You need to be extra careful when dealing with siblings of the opposite gender. There is nothing wrong if the two of them are still very young. Once one starts to become too curious about the other, that is a sign to stop. There will be curiosity and questions because children learn by asking, but if the questions come too often and the child appears preoccupied with the physical differences, it is time to stop them bathing together. Children bathing together are usually too concerned with themselves to pay attention to another person. But when they do start to pay too much attention, then your attention is needed.
When To Stop
As beneficial as it may be, there comes a time when you need to put an end to children bathing together. The age varies for different children though. Stop once you notice they are no longer comfortable (they are not freely expressive) when they seem to want to hide their naked bodies when bathing. If any of them says they don’t want to anymore, then definitely stop. It is very simple, once they start growing up (once they are 5 and above) be ready to put a stop to it. Children bathing together should never be a thing of discomfort. Once it gets uncomfortable, it needs to stop.
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