The Power of the Fist Bump

The power of the fist bump is that is lessens the spreading of germs.

This week, students at my school participated in Field Day.  Field Day is a fun time for all the students.  Parents come out and cheer their kids as each class competes against each other.  Yes, in several of the activities there is a First, Second and Third place!

As I was monitoring the 5th grade Field Day, one of this year’s student teachers showed up to wish the 5th graders good luck.  Of course, when they saw her, they rushed to say hi.  But it didn’t end there. As they swarmed her, they  wanted to give her hugs.  I don’t know about you, but hot, sweaty, stinky kids are not my idea of a good hug!  As she was overwhelmed, she started holding up her hand to give students high-fives!  This too freaked me out!  I quickly gave this student teacher a lesson in germs….  “Fist bumps keep germs off your hands.”  She quickly understood what I was talking about and started fist bumping students.

I wrote about germs in the public school setting last year.  Mac over at SHTF Plan posted the article.  But here are a few of my recommendations for parents to remind students:

Teach them to wash their hands – This is a no brainer, but you can’t imagine how many students don’t wash their hands properly.  When students are caught playing in the restrooms, I always stress to them, “stop playing, do your business and wash your hands.”  I’m a big user of hand sanitizer too.  But this is a temporary solution until you can wash your hands properly.

Make sure they have their supplies – You don’t want your student touching or borrowing supplies from other students.  It is best to make sure that they have their supplies and use what they have.  Yes they are going to want to use their friend’s huge box of 65 Crayons, but try to minimize this as much as possible.  Buy them the cute pencils and erasers so they would want to use their own supplies.

Teach them to cough correctly – Your child can do their part of coughing and not spreading germs themselves.  Teach your child to cough in the fold of their elbow.  This keeps germs away from their hands which in turn will touch everything else.

Feed them healthy food – Make sure your child is getting their vitamins and eating well.  You wouldn’t believe some of the junk that kids bring and parents allow for lunch.  There is no way that a lot kids are eating right.  But it is important to maintain healthy bodies so that their immune system is working on all levels.

The advice for students should also be followed by teachers and everyone for that matter.

One last thing, I also recommend that teachers carry their own pencil/pen and don’t share it.  This seems like a simple piece of advice, but in the process of everyday teaching, it’s easy to share your pen in a meeting or pick up a student’s pencil when you are working with them.  It’s easier to remember this when it’s cold and flu season, but this advice should be followed all year long.

So, protect yourself!  Offer up your fist and EDC your own pencil/pen.  Oh, and you don’t have to be in a school setting to follow this advice.