According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) one of the best ways to help prevent the spread of illnesses, such as COVID-19 and the flu, is to wash your hands frequently, especially when in public spaces. The Russell County Public School system, Active Day, and Head Start programs in Russell County are areas of public space that have a high concentration of vulnerable audiences that may be more prone to the spreading of illness, which can have devasting consequences.

The Russell County FCS Agent partnered with the Family Resource Officers and program directors to the vulnerable audiences within Russell County on the importance of washing their hands. The agents provided educational literature to the audiences by reading Germs, Germs, Germs, and Germs are Not for Sharing from the LEAP curriculum, which discussed how germs are not visible but can be found everywhere. After reading one of the mentioned books, the agent demonstrated the proper hand-washing technique and provided a timekeeping song, such as the ABCs song, to show how long participants should wash their hands.

After the demonstration, participants took part in a hands-on activity using Glo-Germ lotion, to simulate what germs look like on surfaces and hands under a black light. Participants looked at their hands after the lotion was applied, then washed their hands to see how successful they were in applying the lesson materials. Of the 526 participants, 100% of the participants demonstrated an increase in knowledge of proper hand washing. One teacher stated, “after this program, my students sing their ABCs to ensure they are washing their hands properly”. Additionally, of the 23 participants who attended the lesson last school year, 21, or 91%, remembered the lesson and demonstrated retained knowledge on hand washing.