Tips for teaching your toddler good hand-washing hygiene
Written by Chelsea Tromans
Teaching your little ones healthy hygiene habits has always been a crucial step in their learning and development. Now, with the coronavirus pandemic, little tasks like washing their hands regularly has become paramount. To help encourage your kids to regularly wash their hands, try these tips:
Sing a song
To encourage your child to wash their hands for the recommended 20 seconds (according to the Australian government’s health advice), have them sing a song that’s also 20 seconds long as they wash their hands so they learn how long they need to keep their hands under the tap for. ‘Happy birthday’ is a good option. You may want to find a couple of songs that your little one can alternate between to keep them interested in the activity.
Show them a science experiment
The concept of germs can be hard for kids to wrap their heads around, especially when they can’t actually see the germs. This science experiment is a fun activity that can help them to understand how washing their hands assists with keeping germs away. To demonstrate how soap works to fight off germs, put some water in a bowl. Next, sprinkle pepper into the water until a visible film forms on the water’s surface. Get your toddler to dip their finger in some soap and put it in the bowl. As they do, the pepper will scatter away from their finger, demonstrating how soap ‘scares away’ germs.
Give them their own hand sanitiser
To help encourage your toddler to not only use a hand sanitiser but to actively ask to use one regularly, buy them a hand sanitiser to call their own. Lovekins Kids Hand Sanitiser has been gently formulated for kids (the formula is plant-based and alcohol-free) and comes in a cute bottle that they will love using whenever it’s time to clean their hands on the go.
Turn fighting germs into a game
What kid doesn’t want to be a real life superhero?! Make hand washing an enjoyable experience by turning germ fighting into a game. Explain to your little ones that germ are the bad guys and they are a superhero whose job it is to save the world from germs through their super power: washing their hands!