Your toddler and hand washing: Try this fun song!
Every child should be washing their hands regularly. Teach your child the importance of handwashing with this fun song!
It can be difficult to explain to children why they need to wash their hands regularly, especially toddlers. Kids don’t always listen when you tell them to wash their hands before eating, after using the bathroom, or after they’ve played outside. But, it’s a message worth repeating.
Good handwashing protects against the spread of many illnesses, including the common cold, and even more serious illnesses such as flu, meningitis, hepatitis A and most types of infectious diarrhoea.
Germs can spread in many ways, including touching dirty hands, or contaminated surfaces, and through contact with a sick person’s body fluids. When children come into contact with germs, they unknowingly become infected simply by touching their eyes, nose, or mouth.
Tips for effective handwashing
- Wash your hands in warm water.
- Use soap and make sure you get in between the fingers and under the nails. Don’t forget your wrists.
- Rinse and dry well with a clean towel.
When should you wash your hands?
- Before eating and cooking
- After using the bathroom
- After cleaning around the house
- After touching animals
- Before and after visiting or taking care of any sick friends or family members
- After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
- After being outside (playing, gardening, walking the dog, etc).
Fun handwashing song
PinkFong’s “Wash Your Hands“ is a super fun handwashing song for children. Sing along, the lyrics are below, or watch the video with your little one here.
Oh, no! Dirty Germs! Bubble, bubble, soap bubbles. Wash like this, rub like me. Right hand, left hand, up the wrists. Here, there and everywhere. Right palm, left palm together. Greet like this, rub like me. Flip your hand and scrub the back. Here, there and everywhere. Fingers, fingers between fingers. Fold them all, rub like me. Don’t forget under the nails. Here, there and everywhere. Wash your hands. Get away, germs! Dirty little germs go. Bye, bye! Bubble, bubble, soap bubbles. Wash like this, rub like me. Right hand, left hand, up the wrists. Here, there and everywhere. Here, there and everywhere.
