Give Sinks to 100 Schools in Cambodia and Vietnam

Today marks Children’s Day in Cambodia and Vietnam. And one of the simplest ways to keep children healthy and strong? Teach them to wash their hands with soap. It’s the best way to prevent diarrhea and deadly diseases - the leading causes of death among children under the age of five.

To mark the day, we want to share a short video and update you on the progress for the HappyTap in Schools campaign.

To date, we have donated 105 LaBobo portable sinks to 18 schools in need across three provinces in the Lower Mekong region. The bright sinks were strategically placed in participating schools to make it easy for kids and staff to wash their hands at critical times of the day - before eating and after using a toilet. Although LaBobo was designed as a behaviour change tool, we know hardware alone will not motivate kids and their care givers to wash their hands consistently. Our team at HappyTap developed a fun toolkit to help teachers incorporate hand washing not only into the regular curriculum but also into play time. Teacher received instructions for interactive games, songs, and dances to help children better understand germs and the proper technique for washing hands. The schools were also equipped with stickers and posters that act as reminders to staff and students to wash their hands.

Click the link below to watch the video and see our HappyTap team putting the kit into action at several preschools in Vietnam.

Thank you for your continued support. We could not have achieved this without you.

The HappyTap team

Links:

• HappyTap in Schools

Thank you for your support of the HappyTap in Schools project! All together, your donation is allowing us to work with dozens of schools across the Mekong Delta. To identify the schools that are most in need, we have partnered with Vietnam’s Ministry of Health.

The HappyTap team has also been working hard to prepare a comprehensive toolkit to help teachers make handwashing a habit among pre-school and kindergarten students. 

Here is what we have prepared:

The Hardware.

The HappyTap is a portable sink that can be placed at strategic locations around schools where children will be able to wash their hands at critical times of the day – near toilets and outside of classrooms for easy access before meal time. The sink comes in a bright green colour to catch kids’ attention. We also covered it in a playful cartoon decal that resonates well with kids in Vietnam.

The sink was designed specifically as a teaching tool for families with young children. It is already being used by thousands of parents across Vietnam and several hospitals throughout rural Cambodia. With your support, we are now able to work with schools and help teachers effectively instil children with the most basic life-saving skills.

Each school will receive between five to ten HappyTaps depending on the size of the school, the number of students, and the need.

The Handwashing Toolkit.

Our HappyTap marketing team have designed several tools teachers can use to engage young kids to wash their hands. Along with the HappyTap portable sink schools will receive:

Game with gift – our marketing tests have shown that rewards go a long way in getting children to complete a task. We have designed a fun game that allows children to use finger paints to identify where germs like to stay, then wash it all off under the HappyTap. Children who complete the task get a sticker reward.

An instructional video – it seems like a simple task that we do every day. But even adults often do it wrong. So what’s the proper way to wash your hands? This quick instructional video will demonstrate to young students and their teachers the steps to washing their hands. Curious about how to do it correctly yourself? Watch the video below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c2OE7dfIbHo

Song & dance – Showing children how to wash their hands is one small step in lasting behaviour change. But kids, like adults, need to be convinced to do a chore. So we’re turning this chore into a joy with the help of a little music. Every school will receive videos of songs and dances that teachers can show or practice with their students as part of their handwashing curriculum.

Select schools will also receive an activation day where the HappyTap team, along with our Bobo mascot, will lead students in entertaining activities including these songs and dances.

Get a sneak peek of one routine: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ToJSbjvUoS8

Nudging decals – To make sure the lessons stick, all schools will receive bright posters and stickers that can be placed in classrooms or hallways as constant reminders to students and teachers to wash their hands with soap.

What’s next?

On March 19^th we will begin site checks with the first 10 schools. Follow us on Facebook to get a glimpse of photos and videos as we begin donating to the first schools this month.

And read more about teachers at the forefront of hygiene education.

Links:

• http://happytap.org