The medical world says that the one most important thing to do, so you will not get sick as easily, is hand washing. Another is to not touch possibly contaminated surfaces if you can avoid it. So, let’s set up a simple experiment to see what is on our hands that could cause sickness. Following that, let's try another simple experiment that shows us the importance of using soap!
The Bread Project
Purchase a loaf of fresh white bread.
You will also need seven zip lock sandwich bags. Mark the baggies as 1 to 7 with a permanent marker.
Carefully remove one slice of bread at a time from the bread container with clean tongs and place each slice in a numbered zip lock bag. Seal bag #1 as it is the control.
Now do the following:
Bag # 2--Have the child place an unwashed right (or left) hand on the bread slice. Seal.
Bags #3 thru #5--Have the child carefully remove a slice of bread from the bag with tongs. Touch the bread to a surface in the home that you and the child think if likely “dirty”. Then use the tongs to put the bread back in the zip lock bag and seal. Repeat with other surfaces for the other bags. Suggestions for surfaces include the TV remote, the front door handle, the computer keyboard, a favorite toy. Write on the bag or record elsewhere what surface is being sampled. (Scientists keep written records of their work!)
Later in the day when hands are dirty again do this:
Bag #6--The next morning have each child or family member use a hand sanitizer the proper way. Wait until the solution is dry on the hand before touching the bread.
And even later when hands are dirty do this:
Bag #7--Have the child wash hands with soap and water using the 20 second washing time. Touch the bread slice. Seal the bag.
Place all seven bags “touched surface” down in an out of the way place where it is nice and warm. Give the experiment several days. Observe daily to see if anything appears on the bread.
Take pictures along the way as any good scientist will do. Then share your results with other groups and compare pictures and results. Some knowledgeable person might be able to identify what is growing on the culture. As a group come to a conclusion about the best way to reduce what grows on bread and your hand.
You will see why doctors want you to wash your hands often and well with soap and water. SO, GO WASH YOU HANDS.
Note to parents: Especially in working with younger children this activity needs adult supervision. Young children should not be touching anything that grows on the bread so see that those zip lock bags stay zipped, and once this investigation ends dispose of the bags in the trash.
A Peppered Finger
An experiment to show how soap removes stuff from your hands and other objects.
This is a simple experiment to show how your hands pick up stuff as you go about your daily tasks. And it shows how adding soap causes you to easily remove that stuff. Rubbing for 20 seconds (the time it takes to sing the Happy Birthday song twice during the washing) removes most stuff.
To set up the experiment, grab a small bowl (white or clear is better) and fill it with warm water. Take a container of pepper and shake some on the water. Watch to see what happens.
Carefully stick your right index finger into the water. Watch what happens. What is on your finger?
Squeeze dish soap into an even smaller container. (A medicine cup would be ideal.) Carefully stick you left index finger into the soap then into the water with pepper. What happens?
Share the activity with someone else in your family.
The science of how soap interacts with water is complicated but for our purposes with young children talk about how the soap made the pepper move away. When we wash our hands with soap, the soap helps the dirt loosen and ”move away” from our hands. Then, as we rub our hands together the dirt will then wash off and go down the drain as we rinse with clean running water. This is more important now than ever!
~ Dr. Bob ~
No comments:
Post a Comment