Children taught proper hand washing techniques
KwaThema – On October 15, the world commemorated Global Hand Wash Day and during this time locals were encouraged to wash their hands regularly and correctly.
This is because good hand hygiene can significantly reduce the spread of harmful bacteria and other germs that can lead to diarrhoea, vomiting and other harmful infections.
And in continuation of this, recently the KwaThema Crèche joined in on the educational festivities, to teach its children the importance of cleaning their hands, when they should do it, how to wash their hands correctly and why it should be done.
In the Grade R classroom, when the children were asked about hand hygiene, most of them responded by saying that they get their hands dirty when they play outside and when using the toilets, hence they had to keep their hands clean.
“We wash our hands so we can get rid of germs because if we eat with dirty hands, germs will make us sick.
“After playing we also need to make sure that we wash our hands,” says six-year-old Thabo Riba.
Simphiwe Mabena (6) says that it is important to wash hands with soap and water.
She says you do this by pouring soap onto your hands, opening the tap, rubbing your hands and rinsing the soap off, then closing the tap.
After the children’s discussion, head of curriculum at the crèche and Grade R teacher, Nomathemba Ndlovu, demonstrated the proper hand washing method to the children:
n Wet hands with clean, warm, running water
n Close the tap
n Apply a small amount of soap
n Rub the palms together
n Rub the fingers, thumbs and parts in-between
n Rub nails on palms
n Rub the back of each hand
n Open the tap and rinse hand with clean running water
n Dry with a clean towel
“It is imperative for children to wash their hands regularly because when they cough, go to the toilet or play, germs stay on their hands.
“Children also dig in their noses and touch each other’s heads and hair among other things, which always gets their hands dirty.
“When they are outside they also want to touch everything, which is why we always teach them to wash their hands regularly and especially before meals, after using the toilet and after playing,” says Ndlovu.
