Handwashing Works

Welcome to Handwashing Works!

Essity, a global hygiene and health company, has set out to make a difference and improve hygiene standards in schools. The goal of this program is to help establish and reinforce handwashing habits, which will help to decrease the spread of germs throughout schools and in your home.

COVID-19

The Program

The Study

COVID-19

With the risk of COVID-19, it’s more important than ever for schools to improve their hand hygiene education curriculum. Handwashing Works^TM is a free download that shows students how to successfully wash their hands through a fun, engaging lesson that you can implement in your classroom to fulfill state hand hygiene education requirements.

Whether learning will occur in person, virtually or in a home-school setting, this innovative handwashing unit study helps to keep germs at bay– keeping students healthy and in class!

The Program

Handwashing Works is a resource for PreK through 2^nd grade educators to use when delivering handwashing education in their schools. They can download a free instruction kit which includes a lesson plan, virtual presentation, posters, worksheets and even an app! Students will learn about germs, the five steps to follow for effective handwashing, and when they should wash their hands.

Learn more here

The Study

Essity teamed up with the School District of Philadelphia and Temple University’s College of Public Health to measure the impact of hand hygiene education on student behavior.

Temple evaluators observed students and scoring was applied to each child’s handwashing habits over a period of time.

Find out the results here!

Our Program has reached an estimated...

students

Hands

Classrooms

featured

Handwashing Works is going Virtual!

Our New Partnership with We Are Teachers Will Increase Handwashing Works’ Availability Nationwide as Schools Look for Additional Virtual Learning Resources Handwashing Works is a free, downloadable, comprehensive resource for PreK through 2nd grade educators to use when delivering handwashing education in their schools. First launched in 2018 with a lesson plan and colorful, engaging materials to conduct the activity in the classroom, Handwashing Works teaches students …

Keeping Your School Safe in the Time of COVID-19

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, your school system is likely facing several health and hygiene challenges. Your school may be temporarily closed or you may be planning on reopening its doors for the start of the year. When it’s time to return to school, whenever that may be, your students, parents, teachers and staff need …

Handwashing Works is not just for schools and young kids!

Handwashing Works isn’t just for schools! It’s a comprehensive Unit study also suitable for parents, homeschoolers, daycares and interest groups such as scouts and youth groups. Though we created our program for pre-k to second grade classes, we received a wide range of responses and requests from those wanting to implement our program! Hear …

Three critical reasons to teach handwashing early

“Go wash your hands!” For many people, that refrain is an all-too-familiar echo of childhood. Research on hand hygiene, however, finds that it is actually not familiar enough, or at least not having the intended effect. While simple handwashing can remove 90% of contaminants that can cause serious illnesses like diarrhea and pneumonia, only 66% of …

Please Touch then Wash!

In honor of Global Handwashing Day 2019, Essity partnered with The Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia to create a fun, educational and interactive handwashing event. On Saturday and Sunday, October 12 and 13, 2019, children had fun while learning and exploring the five steps to proper handwashing in an engaging way. Using lotion emulating fake germs, …

New Year, New Jingle!!

As we head into the two year anniversary of Handwashing Works on October 15th,2019, we are pleased to introduce two additions to our program – a catchy new jingle, and new activity sheets for students, which will add to the variety currently available on the website. Essity hosted a national HWW Jingle Challenge geared toward …

ENTER ESSITY’S JAMMIN’ JINGLE CHALLENGE FOR THE CHANCE TO WIN GREAT PRIZES

Jingles are memorable, aren’t they? It’s easy to get a TV commercial with a creative jingle “stuck on repeat” in your head. Or maybe you find yourself singing a catchy tune, over and over for hours. We need your help to write a memorable jingle that will inspire children to wash their hands for 20 …

Handwashing Works Goes National!

On October 15, 2018– Global Handwashing Day – Essity announced the National launch of Handwashing Works – our hand hygiene education program. Handwashing Works is a turnkey ‘kit’ for teachers that includes which includes engaging activities, a lesson plan and materials for an in-class instructional activity where students learn the key moments when they should wash …

Nudge, Nudge

For handwashing to be effective, it needs to be practiced consistently and thoroughly. Even when people have access to soap and water, and know how and why to wash their hands, many still do not properly wash their hands consistently at critical times. The handwashing behavior change challenge is not only to encourage people to …

SD of Philadelphia Officials Test their Hand Hygiene Knowledge

On April 12, School District Of Philadelphia (SDP)Officials Tested their Hand Hygiene Prowess With the Essity Handwashing Challenge As the CDC has stated, the 2017-18 flu season was the worst since 2009, and our region continues to report outbreaks. Keeping children healthy and in school is more critical than ever, and proper handwashing is an …

Hi, Gunky Gus!

Anna B Pratt students, were given the first preview of our new handwashing program! Six Pre-K classes of apx 18 students each met our new hand hygiene characters Zoey, Jake and of course the infamous Gunky Gus, a sneaky germ that shows up in lots of unexpected places. A team of 6 Handwashing Helpers, led …

Handwashing Works

After two years of development we are very pleased to announce the launch of Handwashing Works! With Essity’s Hygiene Matters Campaign (now the Essentials Initiative) we discovered the need for more indepth hand hygiene education for children ranging from Daycare to Elementary School age. Diane Engler, Essity’s Director of Communications for North America, decided to …

Lessons in Hand Hygiene at Valley Forge Elementary School

In 2013, Essity discovered that 82% of American parents with children aged 2-6 believed that better hand hygiene at their child’s pre-school, elementary school or day-care could reduce the occurrence of family sick days. Five years later, we are still committed to creating hand washing awareness throughout America, one student at a time On Friday, …

Hand foot and mouth disease: How to take prevention into your own hands

Children in unexpected places are helping an old trend “go viral,” but not in a good way. Hand, foot and mouth disease, or HFMD, most common among young children in developing regions, has been popping up as a troublesome virus in places as “squeaky clean” as Green Bay, Wisconsin. There is no vaccine to prevent …

Tablet App Teaches Kids How to Wash Hands

Days spent at pre-school are packed with activities and finding time to teach and supervise good hand hygiene is a challenge. It’s easy to feel like you are nagging when you have to remind all the time. Teaching good hygiene can be a challenge, but it is critical in reducing the spread of colds, flu …

Handwashing Education Milestones

2016-10-01

Our First Handwashing Event

Our Mother of Consolation, 15 First Graders

2017-02-01

The Big Idea

Essity researches and finds a need for a robust handwashing education program.

2017-05-10

Global Handwashing Partnership

2017-08-01

The Creation of the Handwashing Works Program

Handwashing Works is born!

2018-03-01

New Program Launch and Study Commenced

School District of Philadelphia and Temple University College of Public Health

2018-04-12

Our First Official Handwashing Works event

Fitzpatrick School Bright Futures Pre-K Program, 67 new handwashing masters

2018-10-10

Handwashing Works National Launch

We are proud to announce the national launch of our Handwashing Works through our new website!

2018-12-03

Essity's Jammin Jingle Challenge

2019-10-12

First Community Event

Please Touch Museum Global Handwashing Day Activation