Germs can spread — Biology, 4–6 years
Germs are tiny living things, or pieces of them, that can move from one place to another. Some can make us ill, so clean hands and clean surfaces matter.
Tiny germs can travel
Germs are too small to see without special equipment. They can travel on hands, toys, food, water or droplets from a cough, moving from one place to another without us noticing.
Why does spreading matter?
A germ that reaches a new person may enter the body and multiply. Some germs do no harm, but others can cause illness, so stopping their journey can protect people who are nearby.
From hand to hand
Imagine a child sneezes into a hand and then touches a door handle. A second child touches the same handle, then rubs an eye. Washing hands and using a tissue can break this chain before germs reach the face.
Clean does not mean germ-free
It is reasonable to think that a clean-looking table has no germs, because we judge cleanliness with our eyes. But germs are usually invisible, so a surface can look clean and still need washing.
A useful habit
Washing hands with soap before eating and after using the toilet removes many germs. Covering a cough and not sharing a used tissue also reduces the chances of passing germs to someone else.
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