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Home Helpers 3 to 5 / Week 09 / Tuesday
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Week 09 · Clean Up Crew

Tuesday

Sweep and scoop
// Wipe, sweep, sort and take it out
⏱ about 15 min

Tuesday: Sweep and scoop

Bennie the Bear has been snacking on crackers again. Crumbs trail from the door to the den table and back.

Samantha the Squirrel grabs the broom. "Sweeping is not pushing dirt around. It is gathering it into one pile, then scooping it up."

She sweeps from the corners toward the middle in short strokes. The crumbs gather into a tidy heap. "Now the dustpan. Flat to the floor, and scoop."

Sweeping is gathering

A broom gathers dirt into a pile. Then a dustpan scoops the pile up. Two tools, one job.

Hold the broom with two hands, one near the top and one in the middle. Keep the bristles flat on the floor.

Use short strokes. Long wild strokes fling dust into the air, and it just lands again.

  1. Pick up toys, shoes and anything big off the floor first.
  2. Start at the edges and corners of the room. Sweep toward the middle.
  3. Use short strokes. Keep the bristles on the floor.
  4. Gather everything into one pile in an open spot.
  5. Hold the dustpan flat against the floor. Sweep the pile into it.
  6. Tip the dustpan into the trash. Hang up the broom and dustpan.

A thin line of dust often stays at the dustpan edge. Pull the dustpan back a little and sweep again. Then it comes up.

PUT THE SWEEPING STEPS IN ORDER.
  • ?Tip the dustpan into the trash
  • ?Hang up the broom and dustpan
  • ?Pick up big things off the floor
  • ?Sweep from the edges toward the middle
  • ?Gather one pile in an open spot
  • ?Hold the dustpan flat and sweep the pile in
WHY THIS EXERCISEEdges to middle, pile, scoop, trash. The order keeps dust moving one way.
BROOM BASICS
  • Read the question.
  • Tap your answer.
Where do you start sweeping?
What kind of strokes should you use?
How do you hold the dustpan?

Where the dust hides

SpotWhat hides thereTip
Along the wallsDust and hairSweep sideways along the wall first
Under the tableCrumbsSweep out toward the open floor
DoorwayDirt from shoesSweep away from the door, not out of it
CornersDust ballsUse the broom corner to pull them out
What tool scoops up the pile?
Should you sweep toward the middle or toward the walls?
A thin line of dust stays at the dustpan edge. What do you do?
StatementTrue or false?
Sweeping means pushing dirt around the room.?
You pick up big things before you sweep.?
Long wild strokes are best.?
The broom and dustpan get hung up when you finish.?
WHY THIS EXERCISEGathering, not pushing, is the whole idea. The tools go home when the job ends.
How many hands hold the broom?
WHY THIS EXERCISETwo hands steer the broom and keep the bristles flat on the floor.
Try it
Sweep one small room or the kitchen floor with your grown-up nearby.
Start at the edges. Make one pile. Scoop it with the dustpan.
Hang up both tools when you are done.
Safety first
Watch for the broom handle behind you. Give people room.
If you sweep up anything sharp or broken, stop and call your grown-up.
Wash your hands when the sweeping is done.

Edges in, one pile, scoop. Great sweeping, Helper! Tomorrow the Crew takes out the trash and recycling with a grown-up.

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