Kindergartners ace Hand-washing 101

Kindergartners from McMillan Elementary School received a crash course on germ killing Thursday.

Melody Barenbrugge's kindergarten classes visited Cottonwood Hospital to learn first-hand how to stay healthy.

Kelly Cram, a lab assistant, taught the students about the importance of washing their hands in warm water for 15 to 20 seconds.

"You can remember to sing 'Happy Birthday' to know if you have done it long enough," Cram told the kindergartners.

Two of the students, Baileigh Coon, 5, and Liam Hadden, 6, wore large white lab coats and placed a red solution on their hands. They practiced washing their hands for one second and then four seconds, but the solution remained.

Finally, Cram told all of the students to sing "Happy Birthday" while Coon and Hadden washed their hands.

"See if you can get all the germs off by the time we sing the song," she said.

The two students then scrubbed around their nails and between their fingers while the room filled with the birthday tune. When the song was over, most of the red was gone.

Cram told the students that there are as many germs on their hands as there are people in a football stadium.

The students also learned about cleaning their wounds.

"One time I got an owie on my knee when I tripped on the stairs and my mommy washed it," said 5-year-old Kennedy Wittwer.

Wittwer said people are supposed to wash their sores so germs won't get in there.

"Germs are everywhere and they can get all over," she added.

Six-year-old Ryan Newton said people should definitely use soap when washing their hands.

"Because it will kill the germs and they will say, 'Yucky,' " he said.

The students also toured the nursery, kitchen and radiology departments of the hospital. Some of the students were hesitant when they saw the CAT scanner, but most of them wanted to lay on the machine and test it out. MRI/CT Technologist Dana Underwood told the students not to be scared of the equipment.

"The magical thing about it is, you can lay right here and you won't feel a thing, but we can take pictures inside your body," Underwood said.

Christa Muller, who works in the Cottonwood Hospital public relations department, said students come to the hospital every year.

Cottonwood Hospital partners with local schools for field trips and assemblies throughout the year.

"They remember what they learn. It's amazing," she said.

Barenbrugge said she teaches the students about people they may meet in a hospital setting at varying times in their lives.

"We come here so they'll say, 'I've been to the hospital before; it's fun there.' " Baren- brugge said.

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E-mail: nclemens@desnews.com