We did it again and hope you do too…

Influenza (Flu)-another reason to wash your hands and to cough or sneeze in your shoulder.

Yours truly, The Singing Nurse took the plunge and is here to remind you to get your flu shot if you are able. Remember it’s not about us, even though getting the flu shot will benefit us as well.

Getting our flu shot is an act of kindness towards those we love and especially to the medically fragile people we rub shoulders with everyday.

The flu shot this year includes H1N1 and 2 other influenza viruses. Check out the CDC website, they have gobs of great info on how they choose the viruses and all the scientific stuff, if you are into to that sort of thing. The resources at the CDC would provide great info for a school science project for older children in school or homeschoolers.

Children of course have the highest rate of infection because they are together in close proximity.

Symptoms may include:

*fever   *sore throat   *chills   *fatigue   *cough   *headache   *muscle aches

Infants, the elderly, pregnant women and people with health conditions may become very ill.

The flu can also cause: high fever, pneumonia and diarrhea and seizures in children.

Tens of thousands die, and more are hospitalized from the flu each year.

The CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that all people 6 months and older receive the flu shot.

Flu season is usually between Oct and May.

Check with your doctor before getting a flu shot to make sure you and the children in your life are able.

Adverse reaction to the shot can be from very mild discomfort to a very rare life threatening reaction.

Call your doctor with any question and 911 for anything that appears life threatening. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and seek help. When in doubt check it out.

This post has been a summary from the info found @ the CDC and AAP websites.

Check out their great handouts for parents.

Songs to Listen/Purchase Rubba Dub Dub **Don’t Spread Your Germs Around

Children’s hand washing lesson.

*color sheet*games*crafts*lesson*animation

Posts you may like: H1N1 Rhinovirus/cold Strep Throat

For Healthy Children and Families,

Ms. Dawn, The Singing Nurse

Speaking of Germs: Does anyone know the name of the flu that is going around right now? It’s a lot like the seasonal influenza. H1N1, some call it Swine flu because it is a lot like the germ/virus that gets the pigs sick, but you cannot get it from a pig, you get it from people.

H1N1 is another good reason for washing our hands. Hand washing is the number one action we can take to help get rid of germs which also helps prevent contagious diseases.

Signs & Symptoms of H1N1-fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, body aches, H/A, chills, fatigue, some diarrhea/vomiting.

How is it spread? Touching the germs, a cough, a sneeze (use a spray bottle to demonstrate germs flying around)

What should we do? Wash our hands often, or use hand sanitizer (alcohol based) stay home when sick & when you have a fever (24hr free), stay away from sick people, cough/sneeze in your shoulder or a tissue, don’t touch your eyes, mouth, nose, keep counters clean of germs in your bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and clean children’s toys (virus lives 2-8hrs on objects)

Call the Doctor if you have ?’s.

Bad for: frail people, diabetics, people w asthma, heart disease, people w kidney disease, real old people, real young children, pregnant women.

Vaccine is available to help prevent from getting H1N1 or lessens how bad it can get.

Medicine is available to those who are frail and may need to go to the hospital. Antiviral medication helps stop the virus.

Call the Doctor when you have questions:     

Call 911 if: short of breath and having a hard time breathing, color looks bad (bluish), not drinking fluid, fever w rash, bad pain, really sick

Teaching children and parents about good health habits is important, and learning with music is fun and effective. Try using “Rubba Dub Dub or Don’t Spread Your Germs Around” to present your good hygiene health habit lesson to your young children and their families.

Other resources: Hand Washing Lesson Plan, Music

Check with your local health department for current information pertaining to your geographic area.

For Healthy Families,

Ms. Dawn, The Singing Nurse

another article about handwashing, Rhinovirus interesting observances. The common cold.

Doing what is takes to teach the point!

This handwashing post is dedicated to those feisty energetic preschool teachers, who I happen to believe are some of the most creative bunch of gals on the planet. Most of us are women who work in early childhood because, who else has the patience, and delights in hanging out with a gang of wiggly equally energetic three and four year olds.

My experience working with preschoolers developed while being a mother of three, teaching Sunday school, being a teacher assistant for emotionally disturbed children, and then later, as a nurse, the singing nurse.

The task of hand washing became necessary not only as a mother washing off mud pie and finger paints, but also as a Head Start Nurse. You might be familiar with this program that helps low income families learn all they can about parenting, raising healthy children, leadership and setting goals for themselves. The staff’s job was to discover anything that may hinder the child’s growth in all aspects, be it emotional or health issues, hearing or vision difficulties or the spotting of a potential learning disability.

We worked as a team and were privileged to be part of their developing lives, to give them a “Head Start” before Kindergarten. We worked not only with the children, but with the whole family unit. We take for granted the skills we’ve learned from our parents like, being encouraging, sitting and reading a book with our child, cooking a meal together and gathering as a family to eat it. It was part of the Head Start program to teach and model these family values.

The Rubba Dub Dub Baby

Oh yes, hand washing, just a slight sidetrack and bit of knowledge about the path I’ve been on. So, how does this all tie together? I am a musician as well as a nurse, so I decided to write some health songs while I was working in early childhood development. Who can vouch for the fact that we all write and sing little songs for every purpose while working with preschool children? The common adventures and sometimes scary situations preschoolers encounter in school and with medical professionals gave me the spark to write songs like; I’m Gonna Brush My Teeth, The Dentist is a Good Guy, Don’t Spread Your Germs Around, The Audiologist, The Tick Song, and Babies Are Beautiful.

One health song in particular is a hand washing song for preschoolers called “Rubba Dub Dub”. The tune is an echo song, it is easy to sing, the hand motions are simple, it’s tested and true and the kids love the lively beat. I was blessed by my daughter Hannah who created an animation of my song as a Christmas gift.

I just completed a lesson plan with activities and discussion points that integrates my hand washing song. The basic health lesson is complete with a germ game and several project options, lyrics with hand motions and more.

“Rubba Dub, Dub”, as well as other health tunes can be downloaded at my website. Check it all out, sign up via my contact page to receive news when my animated dental song and completed lesson plan book is finished.

Thanks to a new friend Deborah Stewart who encouraged me to reach out to her circle of early childhood educators with my educational health songs. I found her and her website, Teach Preschool via twitter.

Cheers to competent, innovative preschool teachers. Lead by example and they will follow!

For Healthy Kids, Dawn Ginese, The Singing Nurse

www.TheSingingNurse.com

The Singing Nurse, Dawn Ginese, RN © 2010

The winter is upon us, so we need to teach our children to protect themselves from the lurking germs about us. We need to enthusiastically model to them; washing our hands often, educate our children to not touch their eyes, mouth and nose and remind them to cough and sneeze in their shoulder. The Singing Nurse has a special song available to download that makes your job fun and easy.

Your kids will think you are amazing as you dance and incorporate hand motions and a conga line while waving your tissue. Read on to learn more, to read the lyrics, and to learn the history and inspiration behind the health song, “Don’t Spread Your Germs Around”.

PreschoolRadio.com has included the song, “Don’t Spread Your Germs Around” on their most recent Radio Show. PreschoolRadio is a fun podcast formatted show who plays music for children 6 and under and those who love them. You will meet new artist and have access to their websites to purchase their music. My hat is off to Lyn Michaels-Carden, the producer.

Drawing by April Matula, special ed. preschool teacher, artist and illustrator.

***************************************************************************************************************************************************

#4 on the TSN CD, To purchase click on Music. Can be used with the hand washing health lesson.

Don’t Spread Your Germs Around

Dawn Ginese, RN  2004

If you think you need to cough

You think you need to cough

If you think you need to cough

(Cough sound into your shoulder) in your shoulder

If you think you need to cough

You think you need to cough

Show me what you’re going to do.

(Cough sound into your shoulder) in your shoulder

Chorus:

Don’t spread, don’t spread, don’t spread your germs around x3

Oh no, don’t spread your germs around

If you think you need to sneeze

You think you need to sneeze

If you think you need to sneeze

(Sneeze sound into your shoulder) in your shoulder

If you think you need to sneeze

You think you need to sneeze

Show me what you’re going to do.

(Sneeze sound into your shoulder) in your shoulder

Chorus:

Inspiration

“Don’t Spread Your Germs Around” has a Latin beat so I had my Puerto Rican friend, Jackie Rosado  sing it. The song helps children learn to cough or sneeze in their shoulder rather than in their hands or in the air. If they happen to forget and do it in their hands Jackie asks the children “what are you going to do?”, and they jubilantly reply “wash your hands”. It’s amazing how kids pick up concepts when you use music and motions. We’ve dressed up in Latin attire for this song and towards the end of the song formed a conga line while someone handed a tissue to each child as they passed by. If you have a smaller group, have them pass by a second time for another tissue so they will have one in each hand. One time we had a child dress up in my Nurses dress and cap and had her hand out the tissues.

To purchase click on Music.

3 Free Christmas songs are available until the end of 2009, add them to your library today ready for next Christmas!(update: The Christmas songs will be back again@ the end of 2010)