Personal hygiene activities help young people learn the importance of cleaning their bodies. Activities can teach children about germs and contamination as well as the proper way to brush their teeth, wash their hair, and shower. A parent or teacher can use a number of personal hygiene activities to help children learn to keep clean. The use of music or visual objects, for instance, can help people understand the importance of hygiene.
Some personal hygiene activities involve singing to give a person a general idea of how long to wash. For example, a child can sing "Happy Birthday" while washing his hands so that he learns the proper amount of time it takes to remove dirt and germs. Playing a song while a child brushes his teeth is another way to show him the proper amount of time needed to get his teeth clean.
Other personal hygiene activities demonstrate the way germs or dirt spread from person to person. A teacher can use a substance that transfers from one person to another easily, such as wet, washable paint or small pieces of glitter, to demonstrate the spread of germs. She can touch a student's hand, covering his hand in the paint. The student can then touch another student's hand, and so on, until everyone's hand is covered in paint or glitter. To finish the demonstration, the teacher should wash her hands to show how to remove germs and dirt.
Personal hygiene activities at home involve a parent brushing his child's teeth to teach the proper technique. The parent can then instruct the child to brush his teeth. Once they have brushed each other's teeth, they can inspect them. The parent can check his teeth out in the mirror and point out any crumbs or plaque the child missed.
A parent may decide to make a star chart or other activity that awards a child for practicing personal hygiene. Every time a child brushes his teeth, washes his hands, or has his hair shampooed, he gets a star on the chart. The parent and child can decide on a reward once the chart is full. It can be a reward related to hygiene, such as a fun new bottle of shampoo or a bath toy.
Another way to teach people about hygiene is to quiz them. A parent or teacher can ask a child how long he needs to brush his teeth or wash his hands. She can make up a true or false game, asking the child fun facts about germs and cleaning methods.