With all the concern about Covid-19, it’s easy to forget that schools, especially during the winter months, have always been breeding grounds for a number of illnesses including common colds and the flu. While getting sick with one of these common viruses isn’t necessarily a big problem, it is inconvenient and can leave students or teachers feeling terrible and missing valuable class time.
To help stop the spread of common colds and flus in your school, here are 5 tips to implement immediately to keep students healthy:
1. Provide Plenty of Hand Sanitizer
At each door and within each classroom, students and faculty should have easy access to hand sanitizer. You can encourage the use of the sanitizer with signage explaining how effective the sanitizer is at killing the germs that are likely to make people sick.
2. Encourage Sick Students and Staff to Stay Home
As anyone who has worked in a classroom setting knows, colds and flus spread incredibly quickly and tend to take down anyone who comes in contact with an infected individual. For that reason, it’s important to encourage those who are feeling sick to stay home rather than come to school and spread the illness.
3. Take Activities Outdoors When Possible
If the Covid-19 pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that viruses are more easily transmitted indoors. The same goes for the common cold and the flu. If weather allows, take classroom activities outside as much as possible. At the very least, keep doors and windows open to encourage the flow of air.
4. Avoid Sharing Food
Whether it’s a classroom pizza party or a bowl of “help yourself” candy on the teacher’s desk, it’s best to avoid any kind of food sharing. Rather, pick foods that are individually wrapped.
5. Get Professional Cleaning Help
One of the best ways to keep students healthy and a school germ-free is to regularly clean all surfaces that students and teachers touch during the day. Schools in the Nashville, TN area can rely on Nashville BHS to provide a thorough, spotless clean of their property. The expert cleaning staff at Nashville BHS will disinfect all surfaces while removing dirt and grime from every corner of the school’s premises, greatly reducing the chance for germs to spread.
There’s no doubt that cold and flu season is upon us. However, by providing hand sanitizer, encouraging sick students and staff to stay home, taking activities outdoors, avoiding shared food, and getting professional cleaning help on a regular basis, you can keep your school as germ-free as possible.
