Barna hjelper til med å brette håndklærne, men skittentøyskurven står fortsatt full på badet.

In Norwegian, definiteness is usually built into the noun itself.

• barn = children or child/children in a general sense, depending on context
• barna = the children

This -a ending is a common definite plural ending for some neuter nouns, including barn.

So:

• Barna hjelper til = The children are helping out

Norwegian often attaches the to the end of the noun instead of putting it in front.

Å hjelpe til is a very common expression meaning to help out or to lend a hand.

• hjelpe = help
• hjelpe til = help out / assist with something

So Barna hjelper til sounds more natural here than just Barna hjelper, because it suggests they are pitching in with a task.

Examples:

• Kan du hjelpe? = Can you help?
• Kan du hjelpe til? = Can you help out?

The little word til is part of the expression and changes the feel of the verb.

Med å is a common pattern after some verbs and expressions when talking about helping with, starting to, continuing to, etc.

Here:

• hjelper til med å brette håndklærne
• literally: help out with folding the towels

The structure is:

• med å + infinitive

So:

• med å brette = with folding
• more naturally in English: to fold / with folding

Other examples:

• Hun hjelper til med å lage middag. = She helps out with making dinner.
• Vi begynte med å rydde. = We began by cleaning up.

The å is the infinitive marker, like to in English.

• å brette = to fold
• å hjelpe = to help
• å stå = to stand

In this sentence, å brette appears because brette is in the infinitive after med in the pattern med å + infinitive.

Å brette means to fold.

In this sentence, it refers to folding towels:

• brette håndklærne = fold the towels

You may also see:

• å brette klær = to fold clothes
• å brette et ark = to fold a sheet of paper

So it is a general verb for folding something.

Håndklærne is the definite plural form: the towels.

• et håndkle = a towel
• håndklær = towels
• håndklærne = the towels

Since the sentence refers to specific towels, Norwegian uses the definite form.

This is similar to barna:

• barna = the children
• håndklærne = the towels

It is a compound noun, which is very common in Norwegian.

skittentøyskurven can be broken down like this:

• skittentøy = dirty laundry
• kurv = basket
• kurven = the basket

Together:

• skittentøyskurven = the laundry basket / the dirty-clothes basket

More literally, it is something like the dirty-laundry-basket.

Norwegian often joins nouns into one word where English would use several words.

Norwegian often uses position verbs where English would simply use be.

Here:

• skittentøyskurven står full på badet

The verb står literally means stands, but in many contexts it is the natural verb for an object that is upright or placed somewhere.

So Norwegian prefers:

• Koppen står på bordet. = The cup is on the table.
• Flasken står i kjøleskapet. = The bottle is in the fridge.
• Skittentøyskurven står på badet. = The laundry basket is in the bathroom.

Using er would often sound less natural here. Står gives a sense of physical position.

Because full here is a predicate adjective, not an adjective directly in front of the noun.

Compare:

1. en full kurv = a full basket

   • here the adjective comes before the noun

2. kurven er full / kurven står full = the basket is full

   • here the adjective comes after the verb

In predicate position, adjectives are often used in their basic form, as here:

• Kurven står full.

So this is normal.

Fortsatt means still.

In this sentence:

• men skittentøyskurven står fortsatt full på badet
• but the laundry basket is still full in the bathroom

It often comes after the verb:

• Hun er fortsatt syk. = She is still sick.
• Vi venter fortsatt. = We are still waiting.

That placement is very common and natural.

Because men does not trigger inversion in the way some fronted adverbs do.

Normal main clause word order in Norwegian is:

• subject + verb

So:

• skittentøyskurven står fortsatt full

When you begin a clause with men (but), the clause still keeps normal main-clause order:

• ..., men skittentøyskurven står fortsatt full ...

Compare that with a fronted adverb, which would cause inversion:

• På badet står skittentøyskurven fortsatt full.

There, på badet comes first, so the verb står comes before the subject.

Both på badet and i badet can exist in Norwegian, but på badet is the usual way to say in the bathroom / in the bathroom area.

• på badet = in the bathroom
• i badet more literally suggests in the bath

So in this sentence, på badet is the normal choice for location in a room.

Examples:

• Hun er på kjøkkenet. = She is in the kitchen.
• Han er på badet. = He is in the bathroom.

This may feel strange to English speakers, but it is standard Norwegian usage.

Yes, but it is standard Norwegian word order.

The structure is:

• Barna = subject
• hjelper til = verb phrase
• med å brette håndklærne = what they are helping with

So the sentence follows a normal pattern:

• subject + verb + rest

What may feel unusual is that hjelper til is a two-part expression, and then med å brette adds another verbal idea. But grammatically it is straightforward once you recognize the chunks:

• Barna
• hjelper til
• med å brette håndklærne

Not with the same meaning.

Men means but, so it shows contrast:

• the children are helping
• but the laundry basket is still full

That contrast is the key idea.

Using og would simply join the ideas:

• Barna hjelper til ..., og skittentøyskurven står fortsatt full ...
• This sounds more neutral and less contrastive.

So men is the natural choice because it emphasizes that, despite the help, the job is not finished.

It sounds very natural.

It uses several common everyday features of Norwegian:

• definite nouns attached to the end of the word: barna, håndklærne, skittentøyskurven
• the common expression hjelpe til
• the structure med å + infinitive
• the position verb står
• the adverb fortsatt
• the idiomatic location phrase på badet

So this is the kind of sentence a native speaker could easily say in ordinary conversation.