Play clean-up time songs using a CD and CD player. These CDs are available in many educational stores in your town or online. Play these songs when it's time to clean up and sing the songs with the kids.
Count down from 10 and say "clean up race" to indicate clean-up time. Make sure the children immediately stop playing and begin cleaning. Use a stop watch to time how well your kids clean. Write down the clean-up time on a piece of paper. Keep track of their best times.
Set a five-minute timer with a bell and tell the children they have "five minutes left" to play. After the bell rings, the kids must immediately stop playing and begin cleaning up. Gently redirect kids that continue to play by reminding them it's clean-up time. Supervise clean up to make sure everything is picked up, put away and cleaned off.
Hold up five fingers on your hands and walk around the room. Say the name of each kid and point at your hand. Each kid must pick up five toys as quickly as possible and as quietly as possible. Make sure each kid picks up at least five toys. Repeat the process until clean up time if finished.
Draw a sign on paper using pencils. Color it with the crayons. The sign should read "Clean-up Time" in large, easy to read letters. Hold it up during clean up time. Say "check the sign" to make sure each kid sees the sign. Hold the sign up until the kids are finished cleaning up.