03.12.20 Daily Bulletin: Handwashing
Parent Like a Pro is going daily, with short bulletin style updates to keep everyone armed with the latest information and tips and tricks from all parents who are in this together.
If last night showed us anything, it’s that the pace of change is only speeding up. With the NBA halting its season, Tom Hanks announcing he and his wife have the coronavirus and the disastrous press conference from the White House, it’s clear that things are evolving at a breathtaking speed.
For parents, this is compounded by all the things we have to be adjusting to - figuring out new ways to be productive with WFH and sorting out what this all means for the kids (and that’s if your schools aren’t already closed).
Parent Like a Pro is about taking the best practices of parents that are doing it and sharing them back out to everyone. Each morning we’ll cover a small topic (eg. WFH schedules with kids at home or best activities) and give you just enough to feel prepared but not overwhelmed.
Have you been at this for weeks now? Help the rest of us out. Send us your tips and tricks as they’re happening so we can share them back out to everyone: hello@modernvillage.com.
Let’s do this 💪🏽
PS - have a tip or best practice? - send it to: hello@modernvillage.com
🎯The Stats.
School closure status - see across the country and in your neighborhood.
WHO situation dashboard - the latest counts and cases, by country.
The Topic.
Handwashing and why soap is the best. This article goes into the details, in all its science-y glory, but the bottom line is: plain old liquid soap is going to be our best friend. It not only washes away the virus, it actually destroys it.
The coronavirus is encased in a lipid envelope, which is basically a layer of fat. Soap breaks that fat apart and destroys the virus - it just takes a bit of time, hence the “20-second-sing-HBD-twice” deal.
If soap and water are not available, using a hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol can help. Just let it fully dry on your hands.
The Tools.
Keeping on the handwashing topic - I, like many others out there, have realized I’ve been doing it wrong, all along. In addition to the 20-second rule, here are all the steps:
And as far as getting kids to do it for that long, I’ve been shocked, but my 5-year-old now religiously just sings HBD twice. Could be because big sister’s birthday this weekend so we’ll see. For now, I’ll take it.