Returning to schools post pandemic was not easy. Every parent and child was concerned about staying safe and away from germs. And while we dropped some sanitizing habits we acquired during the pandemic. We believe we must hold on to some others, and even encourage our kids to do so too. Here, you learn what school habits your children should adapt to stay safe and hygienic.
What school habits should children adapt?
1| Hands must be always clean.
Personal hygiene always starts with the hands. As mums, we must teach our children that clean hands are essential. We also must alarm them that dirty hands might cause harm for ourselves or others. Therefore, the first step is to reinforce our kids to always keep their hands clean and sanitized.
First, children should know that they should wash their hands at every possible chance. Like before and after eating, after gym class, and post any outdoor activities. In addition, children should always sanitize their hands just as well. So, make sure you get your little ones Dettol’s Antibacterial Original Hand Sanitizer. It kills all germs and prevents any spreading of bacteria or germs.
2| Use disinfectant wipes.
Many teachers, parents, and experts believe that every student must have wipes with them at all times. That is mainly because germs exist on every surface possible at school – and everywhere else. Therefore, they need good disinfectant multi-use wipes to make sure they are using clean surfaces with zero germs or bacteria.
3| Stationary must be disinfected.
Another important hygiene school habit we should teach our kids is sanitizing their stationary. This includes their pens, pencils, school bags, and all of their belongings. We believe this is important because germs can catch on to those little items. Also, students sometimes tend to share their stationary, so; they must protect both themselves and their peers.
Sanitizing stationary is a piece of cake. All your children need is good disinfectant wipes, or Dettol’s 90mls disinfectant spray. This one is small and light to carry. The disinfectant spray can be more practical and easier to use on a daily basis.
4| Everything should be sanitized.
Not only should their stationary, school bags, and lunch boxes be sanitized. But the rule applies to everything else they use on a daily basis. Like their shoes, clothes, coats, and most importantly, gym clothes and equipment.
You can reach out to the school administration to provide sanitizers for students to use. Or preferably, you can get your children their own sanitizers and disinfectant spray or wipes. This way, they can sanitize anything they might use on school grounds. Like sports equipment, which is often shared amongst many students.
5| Keeping the surroundings clean.
School children must learn to keep their surroundings clean. Whether at home, school, or anywhere else. This is one of the pillars for raising responsible good people. Start by having conversations about keeping the surroundings clean with your kids at home. Reinforce them to clean, sanitize, and keep everything tidy and neat.
After you reinforce this good habit at home, bring school into the conversation. Talk to your kids about how their school is their second home. And just as they keep their home and rooms clean, they should keep school grounds and classrooms clean.
Eventually, this will become a natural habit that they follow. They will keep anywhere they are clean and tidy. Which will mean there are less germs or bacteria to spread diseases.
6| Mouths must be covered when coughing or sneezing.
We all know that good manners dictate us to cover our mouths when we either cough, sneeze, or yawn. But most importantly, this habit protects us from spreading germs or catching them.
We find the best approach to apply this is to role play what should be done with kids. You can do it yourself, or you can always ask teachers and school administrators to do so. Regardless, students must learn what to do when they want to cough or sneeze. They must always use a tissue to cover their mouths and avoid spreading germs on their hands. They should sanitize their hands immediately after to kill any germs or bacteria. And in case they didn’t have tissues on them at that moment, they should cover their mouths with their arms.
7| Sharing personal items is not always good.
Sharing is caring, but not when it comes to personal items like water bottles for example. In such cases sharing is spreading germs or bacteria from one student to another. So, make sure your kids do not share such personal items with their friends.
Teenagers and middle school students might be aware of that. But younger ages might not fully understand that yet. So, explain to them why they should not share personal items with their friends. And ask a teacher to look out for such matters to protect both your kids and their school mates.
Finally, in order to help our kids, gain good hygienic school habits, we need to convey them clearly. We can do so through conversations, role play, and involving teachers and school administrators. Because after all, we, mums, will do so to protect our little ones and the community they are a part of.
