Don’t assume every student is learning the same hygiene habits at home; it’s important to teach the basics.
Kids don’t all learn the same hygiene routines at home. What one family teaches as “common sense” rules about topics like personal hygiene could be very different from what another family does. For example, some kids learn the “5-second rule” when it comes to food that’s fallen on the floor, while the same idea would be severely reprimanded by another set of parents or guardians.
Teachers cannot look at a classroom of 30 students or more and assume that anything is common sense when it comes to preventing the spread of germs — especially COVID-19. It’s a good idea to reinforce best practices and guidelines for safety in the classroom, even if some of the advice seems like it should be a no-brainer for kids:
- Handwashing for a minimum of 20 seconds
- Maintaining a safe distance from other students
- Sanitizing hands and surfaces with a product that’s at least 70 percent alcohol
When it comes to stopping the spread of germs, we need to make common sense as common as it should be.