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When the kids go back to school, the germs go back to working overtime. How long does your child have to be back in school before he or she brings a boat-load of viruses home to the family? Have you already had the pleasure? I have.
Do you think there is a connection between kids being in school and your family getting sick? Do you think children are exposed to too many germs when they are at school? Do you wish you could minimize your child's exposure to germs?
Here are a few of the facts about germs and your child's classroom.
Research done at the University of Arizona found that desk surfaces, computer keyboards, and computer mouses ranked high in levels of five bacteria:
- E. Coli
- Klebsiella pneumonia
- Streptococcus
- Salmonella
- Staphylococcus aureus
But when office workers were told to clean their desk with disinfecting wipes, bacterial levels were reduced by 99%.
Even teachers say more needs to be done to make our classrooms cleaner and healthier for children. A whopping 92% of teachers say that regular disinfecting in classrooms can result in fewer absences caused by illness and 96% of them believe more can be done to make classrooms cleaner and healthier places for our children, according to a survey presented at a news briefing by the American Medical Association. - from WebMD -- Germs in the school room
Click here to see 10 tips to stop germs at school.
Your Easy Guide For Stopping Classroom Bugs - by Scholastic . . .
No doubt you already have a routine for keeping viruses at bay. But since bugs make their way through the classroom at racing speeds, we need to outsmart them before they get to us.
We asked experts to identify the signs of the most common classroom illnesses, plus offer their suggestions for giving those bugs the ax. Here’s what they said.
From the Clorox Company . . .
- 94 percent of nurses surveyed believe classroom cleaning routines for teachers to follow would help combat germs at school.
- Nearly two-thirds of respondents believe disinfecting plays an extremely important role in maintaining a healthy classroom.
- 98 percent disinfect their own offices. It's also important for sick students to stay home.
- More than half of students seen by school nurses came to school ill. Traditionally, school custodial staff members clean areas of the classroom including floors, chalkboards, sinks and bathrooms, but do not disinfect desktops, computer keyboards and mice, and other high-touch areas where germs can harbor. It's left to teachers and parents to clean these items.
A fall 2005 study by University of Arizona further shed light on the importance of cleaning in schools. After comparing bacteria presence on office surfaces of professionals in different occupations, the study ranked classrooms as the #1 workplace for germs and named teachers as having the "germiest" job.
Here is a sampling of some of the teacher and mommy blogs that are talking about germs.
From Teach J . . .
As a media/journalism teacher, you will be with your kids more hours a day than nearly anyone else will. I routinely get to school at 6:30 am and leave around 4:30 pm. During most of that time there are students there, and where there are students - there is mess. What is worse than mess are germs. Here are some things that you might want to keep on hand in your classroom.
From TeachNet . . .
For a quick lesson with instant results, cover a pencil with glue, then sprinkle glitter all over the glue. Pass the pencil around the room (yes, this one's a little messy!) and watch the glittering "germs" spread from one student to the next. If you wipe the pencil off with a paper towel, some of the germs will still remain. This is why it is important to actually WASH the pencil (and everyone's hands) with soap and water to effectively remove the germs. You can expect at least one of your students to touch something else once they have glitter on their hands. Glitter on a desk, one their face, or in their hair is an even better example of how easy it is to spread germs.
Jessica, from Juice to Joy says . . .
My preschool class is over-run with illness. Croup is going from child to child and even leaping into other classrooms. I actually think it started in another classroom. Three-year-olds don't share much, but they do share germs in
