Preschooler Week 27

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Wash Away Those Germs

As adults, we know that washing our hands and face is crucial to good health. Instilling these same healthy habits in our children while they are young gives them a better chance of living healthy and disciplined for the rest of their lives. It remains though that children do need occasional reminders to wash their hands after using the toilet, or to brush their teeth before sleeping at night.

How do you make these habits come more naturally to your kids? You may start by asking them why they need to do these things in the first place. Why do they need to wash their face? How about their hands? Don’t the hands get messy after eating lots of chocolates and ice cream? Doesn’t the face get smudges of ice cream that get sticky over time? Don’t the teeth get those brown smudges in between because of the chocolates? And more importantly, don’t they need to wash off all these mess so they can use their hands properly, so their teeth won’t end up aching in the middle of the night, so they don’t go to bed with sticky faces?

The key therefore is to establish a cause-and-effect relationship between what they just did (i.e., eat ice cream) and what they have right now (i.e., messy hands). More importantly, you need to make them realize that they need to do something to get rid of the messy hands (i.e., wash them with water).

Convincing kids to wash their hands after using the toilet may be another matter altogether. Why? “But my hands are clean!” This situation is in fact the opposite of what you have just taught them about the ice cream mess. Why wash if there is no visible mess to get rid of? This is where you explain that some things are invisible, including germs, and that they need to be washed immediately because they make children sick.

Instilling these habits need not be tedious. In fact, there are ways to make it a pleasant habit for kids. First on your order is to make the action doable for your kids (when it’s difficult for them to do, they don’t always see the point of doing it, right?). You may need to purchase a stepstool so your kids can reach the sink without stretching and standing on tiptoe. Use extra mild soap for kids, and it would be better to get one that comes in their size for an easier grip. Or you may use liquid soap in a pump container for easier application.

Teach your child to rub the soap between his or her fingers and palm before rinsing them off with water. You can sing the ABC throughout to make sure each hand is cleaned thoroughly. Be careful to not get soap into your child’s eyes when washing his or her face (and this is also why you should use extra mild soap).

Place a towel near enough for your child to reach so that he or she can dry off his or her hands and face easily. Choose a towel your child likes (or better yet, have him or her pick a special towel at the store). Children would feel a sense of achievement once they complete the task without so much assistance. If you do this everyday without fail, washing will eventually become a natural part of your child’s routine.

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