top of page
Search
helpoutreach2484
Apr 6, 20206 min read

Activities About Germs For Kids: Making It Meaningful And Fun

Updated: Apr 13, 2020

It can be difficult to get children to wash their hands on a typical day. You ask them "Did you wash you're hands?" and suddenly you are hit with a barrage of replies.


"They're already clean! I counted to ten"

"I didn't touch anything!"

"My hands smell clean, smell them!"

"I washed my hands this morning!"

"I don’t need to wash my hands because I only peed!"

"My hands look funny after I wash them!"

"I DON'T SEE ANY GERMS ON THEM!!!!"

The concept of germs is abstract for children. Teaching kids about germs and explaining hygiene make it easy for you to keep them healthy. When explaining germs keep it simple.


'Germs are tiny living organisms that invade our bodies and can make us sick. They are found all over and on the objects we use. The germs are tiny and sneaky and can creep into the human bodies without getting noticed.'


You can explain to older kids that the germs are so tiny that they cannot be seen with plain eyes, but only through a microscope. If they really want to understand more about germs you can talk about the main types 4 types; fungi, virus, bacteria, and protozoa. They can invade human bodies, animals, and plants and cause diseases.


Share these facts about each of them with your kids:


1. Bacteria:

  • They are tiny creatures with only one cell.

  • They gather their nutrients from the environment to live. In some instances, they penetrate human bodies to get nourishment.

  • Bacteria can reproduce both inside and outside our bodies and cause infections. Some common infections caused by bacteria are ear infections, pneumonia, and sore throats.

2. Virus:

  • Viruses live and multiply inside our bodies.

  • Most viruses cannot survive if they are not inside a living thing such as a plant, an animal or a person.

  • But, viruses can live for a short time on inanimate objects too, such as doorknobs, counter tops, plates or mugs.

  • The body where a virus goes to live is called its host.

  • Depending on the factors such as the type of germs, the kind of surface they are on and the environment, some viruses can survive longer than 24 hours, while some for 30-45 minutes .

  • Viruses cause diseases like measles, chickenpox, and flu.

3. Fungi:

  • Fungi are plant-like organisms. But unlike other plants, fungi cannot produce their food from light, air, and water.

  • Instead, they get their nutrition by invading plants, animals or people.

  • They love to grow in damp and warm places and are not very dangerous.

  • They can cause itchy rashes on the body.

4. Protozoa:

  • Protozoa are tiny one-cell organisms that love to grow on moisture and mostly spread diseases through water.

  • They can cause infections in the intestine that cause diarrhea, stomach pain etc.


You can discuss with your kids all about germs — hygiene, cough and sneeze etiquette through the following questions.


1. How do germs spread?

Germs spread when you cough or sneeze without covering your mouth. If you sneeze in your hands and touch objects, the germs get there too.



2. How can we prevent germs from spreading to others?

Maintaining hygiene is the nonpareil way of preventing germs. Here’s what you may tell your kids.

  • Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue or your elbow while sneezing or coughing. If you used a tissue then throw it away.

  • If there is no tissue and you sneeze in your hands, wash them with soap and warm water because germs get into the hands and then on touching other objects (like toys, pencils, door knobs, etc.), they spread there too.

  • Do not hug, share food, or shake hands with someone who is sick as the germs can spread.


3. What is the right way to wash hands?

Have your kids follow these four simple steps to wash their hands:

Step 1. Wet your hands with warm running water from the tap.

Step 2. Turn one palm upward under the nozzle of the soap bottle and pump out some soap with the other hand. Rub your palms all over, including the fingernails, and then rinse it under running water to wash off.

Step 3. Rub your hands for 20 seconds under the water. So, you can sing a song to make the time fly.

Step 4. Dry your hands using a paper or cloth towel. If you are using a paper towel, dispose of it.

Hand washing songs:

Video aids explaining covid-19/germs:

Please first watch the videos by yourself to determine which one is the most appropriate for your child/children


While you want your kids to be aware of hygiene and what causes illness in them, you should not instill fear in them about germs.


Therefore, make the hygiene classes interesting through some fun activities.


Now the fun stuff:

  • Germs Experiment for Kids! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_KirHm_sYfI

  • Similar to the germ experiment above, this activity is a fun and creative way to show your child just how effective soap is when washing their hands, emphasizing the importance of using soap every time they wash their hands to get rid of germs. Use cooking oil with a little bit of cinnamon to represent the invisible germs. Place a tiny bit of the cinnamon infused oil on your little one’s hands and let them rub it over their hands like lotion. After their tiny hands are covered, allow them to notice how icky, sticky and slippery their hands feel. Allow them to wash it with water first (without soap). Their hands will still have some ‘cinnamon germs’ on them and still feel oily. Tell them to wash their hands again, only this time with soap. The results will speak for themselves and encourage your kids to do a thorough job next time they wash their hands.

  • An Activity sheet from Columbus Public Health https://www.columbus.gov/uploadedfiles/Public_Health/Content_Editors/Resources_For/Educators/Teaching%20young%20children%20handwashing.pdf

  • Lesson plans and activities at the website of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pdf/freeresources/updated/teachingchildrenflu.pdf

  • Go online and check out the songs and activities from NSF International. https://www.scrubclub.org/index.php

  • If you have stale bread you can explore germs with this experiment https://ece3waggy.wordpress.com/2012/07/03/our-experiment-on-germs/

  • Try the glitter experiment to showcase how easily germs can be spread around physically. You’ll need glitter, water and soap. Tell your child to rub their hands with glitter. Then proceed to let them run around a bit and touch surfaces and objects. If you’re worried about the mess, tell them to only touch their other body parts, like their arms, legs or face. The glitter will easily spread, which can be used as a great example as to how easy it is for germs to leave traces all around us. Proceed to let them wash their hands with water and soap to show them how the glitter germs disappear after washing their hands. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cbFjcAdsADg

  • Show them why you tell them to cover their mouths when sneezing, so they can see for themselves how far a sneeze travels. Take coloured water and a spray bottle. Pretend that the water is a sneeze. Spray it on a blank paper or tissue see just how far and wide the coloured water ‘germs’ reach. Here's an example of the MythBusters showing how far a sneeze can travel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0f4sUNWkq60

  • Make a few germ cut-outs and ask your kids to stick them to the things around them that they frequently touch, or think is particularly germy. This technique allows your children to have a bit of fun with the concept of germs. It portrays a physical trace of where germs can be; they can even stick it on each other for fun. It also allows them to use their knowledge and instincts as to why they think certain spots are more prone to germs than others.

  • Fill a latex glove with water, mark it with markers, representing germs. Freeze the glove overnight. Then ask your kid to clean the ‘germ’ covered hand. Give them soap, water and whatever other utensils they desire. This is a fun and creative way to see what works and what doesn’t.

  • Make a hand washing chart with the whole family! It's important for children to see how often the adult(s) in they're lives are also washing they're hands. For every time someone washes their hands place a sticker on the chart. You could even place sticky notes and write why you washes your hands e.g., petting an animal, came from outside to inside, about eat, finished eating, used the bathroom, etc.


These days it can be overwhelming with the constant updates on Covid-19 about the do's and don'ts. It's important to take each day one at a time, remembering that we need to look after both the physical and mental health of our family.

4 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Opmerkingen

Post: Blog2_Post
bottom of page