Tis the season for back to school. And sickness. I can already see my Facebook feed stacking up with sick kids and illness striking down whole families. One poor mom I know just got rid of a stomach virus plaguing her kids only to have strep throat take its place the very next week! Besides the influx of cool air and flu season, kids coming together at school and sharing germs is making us sick! I’ve covered what you should have in your medicine cabinet for babies and toddlers as well as what immediate action you can take when your child becomes sick, but this post is all about how to keep germs at school and not let them follow you home! Of course, you can’t stay well all of the time (the odds are against us!!), but you can certainly stay healthier with these tips. I’m sure you already do some of these everyday, but combine them all to battle germs with the power of wonder woman!
Wash Hands During School Pickup
Before you even leave the school with your child, wash their hands! Keep those germs at school and don’t even let them into the car or onto your neck with a hug!
Keep Hand Wipes in the Car
You know that little stash of diapers, baby wipes, snacks or clothes that you have in the car? Put it to everyday use! If you can’t get your kids to wash their hands as they leave school, this is the next best thing. Snag some hand wipes (or even just use those handy baby wipes) to clean hands and faces as your kids get into the car. Clean boogery noses, muddy playground hands or leftover lunch faces. Head off those school germs before they enter your car!
Change School Clothes
If your child attends a school that requires uniforms, this is the perfect opportunity to let them settle into play clothes or something more comfortable. Public school children might like to come home and sport a favorite T-shirt. Either way, it helps to get those school germs into the hamper or wash and off your child! Try leaving shoes at the door, too, so you’re not tracking dirt and germs through your house.
School Sneakers Only
Speaking of shoes, try having an exclusive pair for school. Hit up sales, consignment, etc., so your child might have a pair of closed toed shoes to wear at school alone. This can cut down on germs at home, too!
Wash Linens Often
Just like when your child is sick, it’s a good idea to wash bath towels often, at least once a week. Kitchen hand towels should be changed out daily, and if there are washcloths that get used often, change those out daily, as well. Bedsheets need to be on a schedule that fits your lifestyle – if you go to bed without showering, step up the schedule. Those that shower or bathe before bed can go a little longer.
Wash The Backpack, Too
And while you’re at it, wash that backpack! Many backpacks are machine washable, (I used to wash my Jansport all the time!) and if you’ve ever dug into a backpack after the first few months of school, you’ll find all sorts of trash, grime and grub. Not to mention the bottoms of backpacks that touch the floor of the bus, classroom and then your house…. Seriously, wash that sucker. Your health will thank you!
Rinse Lunch Boxes
We all put the tupper ware and bento boxes in the dishwasher after use, but you should think about throwing the lunchbox in there, too. If you are worried about your characters peeling off the face from the heat of the dishwasher, at least wipe the lunchbox down with a soapy sponge and hot water before letting it dry on the counter. Don’t give bacteria or old foodstuffs a chance to grow and contaminate your kids.
What other tips do you have to keep germs from following you home from school?
These are all great tips. I always kept a bottle of hand sanitizer in the car.
I never thought to wash my kids backpacks before. That’s actually a really good idea.
These ideas are so awesome! I can’t believe I never thought of any of them. Thanks!
What great tips you have here! I’m passing this along to my parents groups!
I love this article so much I bookmarked. Children are little incubators, and they can get each other AND their parents SO sick!
My kids were ALWAYS sick when they were in school. We lived by these tips!
Oh this is such a great reminder now that we are two weeks in and have to get out of summer mode.
I would have never thought to have a pair of shoes just for school. We do a lot of hand hygiene to keep the germs away.
Thank you for the tips. I am for sure going to implement the change school clothes in my household.
These are great tips. School just started here and I already have one child out sick. Hoping to keep all the rest of the icky germs at school going forward.
My kindergartener came home from school today peeved that she wasn’t allowed to put her hands in her mouth “even if she had something stuck in her tooth” at school. O.o Germs are a problem lol
I should wipe down my son’s lunchbox. That was a great tip.
There is a first round of something going around one of my kids schools already! Handwashing is a big thing we do. I’m intrigued about your idea of getting the school clothes off and dedicated a pair of sneakers for school only. Do you find that really makes a difference in controlling germs?
Washing is s oimportant. I work in a school so I am constantly washing my hands.
Great tips! Some of these I did already, but others I didn’t so I will now. My kids have been very lucky with the fact they maybe get 1 or 2 colds a year and flu? They’ve had one in the last 3 years… So I am hoping to keep this going!
The bases are covered on trying to keep the germs out of the house. Great post. Wouldn’t it be nice if parents kept the kids at home when they got sick instead of sending them to school to contaminate everyone else? I’ve heard flu is going around the schools already, so I’ll head into Walgreens to get my flu shot today.
These are great tips. I hate how much the kids get sick once school starts. I will have to share this with my friends with kids.
I hadn’t considered keeping things just for school use. Because my kids prefer flip flops, which aren’t allowed at school, we accidentally are following that tip already.
I started working at my daughter’s school and I feel so germy when I leave. I go through a lot of hand sanitizer and wipes.
I hadn’t thought about exclusive school shoes, that’s a great idea! We definitely are BIG handwashers
This is such a great post and these tips are so helpful. This is so timely with school starting up!
School is in session and that means there are lots of germs out there! This is a great list. Thanks for sharing.