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Roll with the times, right? Bad pun considering the activity I want to share with you. This new hand washing game uses dice as a fun way to practice counting (and shapes/colors if you want) along with a little hygiene lesson tucked in.
Encouraging kids (and let’s face it, adults too) to wash hands is a necessity. Add a little extra learning and fun into the lesson with this free dice game.
Here’s how the game works:
(These instructions will print along with the game.)
Laminate your game page (here’s the laminator I recommend). Using a dry erase marker (preferably in a color other than black, so it stands out), add “germs” to the hands. Dots, small circles, or squiggles will do just fine. No fancy germs needed. ๐ Add as many as you’d like. More germs equals more play time. Use a dry eraser, tissue, or cotton pad as your “soap”.
Single player: Roll your die and count the dots. Wash that number of germs away! Higher numbers (a.k.a. scrubbing longer) means more germs get washed away. Practice adding and see how many rolls it takes to get clean hands.
Two players: Assign each player to a hand (ex. player one gets the right hand, and player two gets the left.) Take turns and roll a die each. Count the dots and wash that number of germs off your hand. Higher numbers (a.k.a. scrubbing longer) means more germs get washed away. Practice adding and see how many rolls it takes to get clean hands. The first player with a clean hand wins. Keep going though; we want both hands clean!
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As an option, you can mix in some color and/or shape practice. Draw your germs in different colors/shapes. You might like to draw a mix of squares, circles, and triangles. Or a mix of different color dots. Before you roll, choose what you’re going to wash away first. Wash away all those germs first before moving on to the next shape or color. For example, wash off all triangle germs before you move on to square germs. Practice saying the shape or color name each time you wash off the germ.
Get your hand washing dice game in my Free Printables Library.
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This hand washing game can be a great conversation starter about how important it is to wash our hands, how there are different kinds of germs, the purpose of soap, and how washing longer and more thoroughly is more effective.
What fun ways have you found to encourage proper hand washing with your kids?
Encourage proper hygiene in your daily routine with my Daily Responsibilities Chart. With visual reminder icons for everything from brushing teeth to taking a bath, your kids can practice independence while learning important life skills. There’s even an expansion pack with more icons to fit your daily schedule. Check out the post on my Responsibilities Chart.
Get your Kids Daily Responsibilities Printable Chart here!
Get your Daily Responsibilities Chore Chart Icons Printable Expansion Pack here!
Mindy Jones Blog says
We absolutely love this game! Such a fun and visual way to explain germs. Thanks so much Kristen! โค๏ธ
AW says
Happy Sunday! God is so awesome! Came looking for your 10 Commandments stuff (which is great! Thank you!) Decided to checkout the homeschool section as we normally homeschool (vs quarentine school) so alway looking for good resources. Then came upon the handwashing game which we are always in need of these reminders with my resistant little… Which can be harrying in they current conditions (don’t know if this pribtable is for Covid 19 since I can’t see a date on it but it is perfect for this climate..) Thanks so much for the great resources!
Kristen says
So glad you found some helpful info! I did create it to go with the times. ๐ But handwashing I’m sure will become a much more practiced habit!