A guide for developing healthy habits & keeping good hygiene

At Young Academics Early Learning Centre, each child’s personal hygiene is of the utmost importance. From washing and sanitizing hands before and after meals, and regularly throughout the day, to keeping good hygiene throughout all seasons of the year, we place high importance on this aspect throughout the course of the day. Teaching children good hygiene from a very young age is important as it gets them used to developing good habits that they can sustain as they grow older.

Here are 6 simple tips to help children develop healthy habits for good hygiene:

• Bathe daily - this includes baths or showers to ensure all the bacteria that our bodies carry, is properly cleaned off
• Brush teeth - brushing teeth at least twice a day, once in the morning as well as right before bed is essential to maintain healthy teeth and gums. 2 minutes is the minimum length teeth should be brushed for in order to prevent tooth decay and gum disease
• Wash hands with soap - it is essential that hands are thoroughly washed before and after eating meals, after going to the toilet as well as during normal daily activities such as playing indoors and outdoors or being out in public which results in having to touch communal objects. It is said that to achieve a thorough clean, hands must be washed for at least 20 seconds. That is the equivalent of singing "Happy Birthday" twice
• Change dirty clothes - when clothes get dirty wash them and be sure to hang them in the sun. The sun helps to eliminate any potential disease-causing germs that could be found on dirty clothes
• Sneeze into a tissue or forearm -  sneezing into a tissue or one’s forearm prevents from germs spreading a lot less than if one were to sneeze into their hand. This is because we use our hands to touch different surfaces throughout the day such as doors, tables, books and pencils
• Pack away unused toys/clothes - getting children to pack away any items they have just used helps to keep the house, their bedrooms or their classrooms clean and tidy. Tidiness is very important to maintain a clean environment.

At Young Academics Early Learning Centre, we take personal hygiene very seriously. From the moment each child enters our doors to the very moment they leave, we ensure that our educators provide a clean and safe environment for all. More importantly, our focus is on instilling healthy and hygienic practices into the minds of our little ones, so that they can foster essential habits for life.