As the kids grow up it's interesting to start teach them some routines to encourage their development and personal growth. This is the case, for example, of handwashing, a task that serves to instill in them the good habit of personal hygiene and prevent the spread of some common viruses. On the occasion of Hand washing world day, which is celebrated on October 15, we bring you some ideas to encourage this routine at home and make washing your hands a lot of fun.
Cleaning and dexterity
Our hands touch throughout the day many objects that, in turn, pass through the hands of other people. Therefore, when we get home we wash them well to be clean and hygienic. And what about the children? Well the little ones touch even more things, with the difference that they are not so careful and their hands go from the floor of the park to the mouth and to caress the neighbor's pet to the cookies they eat. Touching things is good and natural, but then we must make sure that all those microorganisms disappear washing your hands well.
In addition to improving your hygiene, this routine will help you to acquire new skills. Washing your hands is a simple action for us, but for kids it requires certain skill, so through this habit they will be learning to join hands and coordinate their movements to rub them together. In turn, they learn to open and close the tap, a task that improves their fine motor skills and motor development.
As long as they are small, you will do it, but when they start to get older you can teach them to wash their hands by themselves. To clean your hands well, you have to rub them well, without forgetting your wrists, and also between your fingers, using soap and water, better if it is warm. To ensure that your hands are really clean, you can finish rubbing them and then rinse them, taking advantage to also clean the face.
We learn by playing
To wash your hands, or any other action, is fun you have to foster it in a casual way and without pressure. If you try to wash your hands by obligation, in a hurry and in bad ways, you will get just the opposite effect: that you don't want to do it.
There are many ways to motivate them and make washing their hands a lot of fun. One of the simplest is by example. If they see you wash your hands frequently, they will soon want to try it and do it for themselves. ¡¡Let them experience and try it! Another formula is to do it Playing, well inventing a ritual or a story, something that is fun and motivates them, so they want to wash their hands. Be that as it may, when they try it, encourage them by telling them how well they have done it, that they are older and learn very fast.
To make it easier for you, there are non-slip stools which, bringing them closer to the sink, will allow the children to access the tap. You can also do bidet use, much more accessible to them, disinfecting and conditioning that area for use, placing their soap near and a hand towel for when they finish.
If you set a few moments of the day for handwashing, soon it will become a routine and they will ask you to do it themselves. For example, a very appropriate time to do so is when you get home from the park or school, where dirt will inevitably have accumulated. You can also remind them to wash their hands before and after eating, after playing and doing crafts, after peeing or after playing with animals.
While they are learning and until they get the necessary ease, handwashing will be accompanied by splashes, debris and dirt. That is why it is important that you thoroughly clean the entire area, using specific products such as 2in1 star. They, for their part, will be learning an important hygiene habit for the future.
Hand washing world day
To raise awareness among young and old about the importance of this small gesture, Star, Rabbit and Neutrex, as ambassador brands of disinfection, have launched a campaign to encourage this habit between children.
This action has been implemented coinciding with the Hand washing world day which is celebrated on October 15. This event, which was born by UNICEF in 2008, promotes handwashing in all areas and areas, being of vital importance in the health sector.
Henkel brands have distributed in various supermarkets and hypermarkets a fun poster with stickers to teach, through the game, the importance of this little gesture. Because with proper hand washing and good hygiene at home you will prevent the spread of common viruses, being a great tool for prevention of diseases such as influenza, cold or gastroenteritis.
Remember that washing your hands is a small gesture that you can encourage from a young age through play and example. It is the best way for your children to acquire and internalize this habit and to wash your hands with soap and water Frequently.
Photos | iStock: Lacheev / Jorge Salcedo
