I’m pretty sure most kids fall into one of two categories: the ones that hate washing their hands and will avoid it at all costs and the ones that want to wash their hands until they’re nice and wrinkly. This germaphobe momma is pleased to say that my son falls into the second category. He happily washes his hands and does it well. If you’re struggling with getting your child to wash their hands you’ll want to give these tips a try.
- Encourage independence – Preschoolers love to do everything themselves. They’re constantly testing limits and looking for encouragement. Let them wash their hands and throw a little praise their way. Sure it may take more time, but in the long run it will pay off with a clean, confident kiddo.
- Use a visual aid – Sometimes preschoolers need a reminder of what comes next. I adore this free printable from Frugal Mom and Wife that includes visual cues for each step of washing your hands. Visual aids like this can be incredibly helpful for pre-readers.
- Sing a song – Did you know that the CDC recommends you scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds? This can feel like an eternity in preschooler time. Try singing a song while you wash. The ABC song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Row Row Row Your Boat all work well. If you’re feeling creative you can even come up with your own little tune.
- Make the sink more accessible – A small stool will make handwashing easier for kids. When they’re in charge of turning on the faucet and getting the soap they’re more likely to want to do it. Since they won’t have trouble seeing they’ll also be able to clean their hands better and make less of a mess.
- Give them their own special soap – Kids love feeling special so designate a special soap for them to use. My son loves Dial Kids Foaming Hand Wash. The bottle is just the right size for little hands and he gets excited with the “bubbles” (aka foam) it pumps out. Its “watery melon” scent is so good I can’t help but use it when I wash my hands too!
Thanks to Purex Insiders and Dial we had the pleasure of trying Dial Kids Foaming Hand Wash and Dial Baby Body & Hair Wash. Both washes keep kids and parents happy with their gentle formulas developed by pediatric dermatologists. They’re hypoallergenic with no added parabens or artificial dyes. I’m confident you’ll love these as much as we do so I’m happy to host a giveaway for a free bottle of your choice. The winner will receive one coupon for either a free bottle of Dial Kids Foaming Hand Wash or Dial Baby Body & Hair Wash. Please be sure to follow the rules in order for each entry to count. Good luck!
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The Dial® brand provided me with a sample of Dial® Baby Body + Hair Wash and Dial® Kids Foaming Hand Soap and coupons to share in exchange for a product review. Please know that all the opinions expressed here are entirely my own and not influenced in any way.
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I’d love to try the baby shampoo and wash!
I think scents and packaging that appeals to kids makes hand washing fun for them.
Thankfully they really don’t mind it yet. My grandkids love the fact they are able to “play” in water. I am sure it will change as they get older.
We sing songs while we wash.
We sing a special hand-washing song.
We act very silly while we do hand washing :)
Fun soaps always help!
My son is only 22 months so I just kinda do it
We sing while we wash our hands. Fun squirt hand wash and a cute towel add to the experience.
this would be great for my sister who is adopting a little one; she could use this to make handwashing more fun!
my girls are still young enough that they think handwashing is fun because they get to “play in the water”. But, i know as they get older it will lose it appeal!
by singing the Happy Birthday Song to time it
any way i can
I try to buy fun scented soaps for her.
By having a fun bottle.
We sing ” now its time to was our hands so we can be so clean!”
Sometimes we sing our handwashing song they made up while they wash their hands and sometimes just do silly things like make faces in the mirror while doing it.
I try to make it more fun by buying soap that smells great! kristiedonelson(at)gmail(dot)com Thank you.
We sing a song like Happy Birthday while washing hands!
We have fun character handwash and sing a special song.
With my youngest, I have to do nothing. She is in forever washing her hands but does like fruit scents
We sing the Happy Birthday song
We sing songs and giggle
I get a soap product that they like and smells nice.
We sing.
We play sing along games while we wash hands!
by singing the Happy Birthday Song while we wash hands
I try fun scents.
i sing with my kids while they do it and we also dance sometimes as well
We usually sing a song while we wash our hands!
we just have fun and have a little jingle we sing about germs
Pick me