Most of us begin the week (and weekends) with a plan of sorts. Whether it’s on paper, in a calendar, or simply in our heads; we often know how we expect or want our week to flow. Appointments, work meetings, children’s schedules, grocery shopping, social commitments – it’s all in there. Of course, the structure we plan often is upended due to the fact that life is simply unpredictable. That orderly week you just planned? It’s suddenly become a cluttered assortment of moving parts.
But don’t let that discourage you – you’ve got this! There’s one thing that can help you and your family feel some sense of control over some of the chaos in your everyday life at home – and that’s establishing routines. Focusing on ways to maintain these routines is an important way to get started maintaining a sense of order in everyday life. This may be particularly true if you have children in your household.
The team at Time Timer has some great ideas to get you started with simple ways to encourage a bit more structure in various parts of your family’s day!
Handwashing hygiene
As adults, we’ve all come to understand the importance of handwashing in preventing the spread of germs and viruses that can cause illness. Of course, since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, the subject of handwashing hygiene has been top of mind and heralded as one of the most important ways to help halt the spread of the virus. Even as pandemic-related restrictions continue to lift, our awareness of the importance of good handwashing technique is more profound than ever.
According to research published by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) National Library of Medicine, handwashing can reduce the risk of respiratory infection by 16-to-21 percent. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), proper handwashing also reduces the number of people who get sick with diarrhea by 23-to-40 percent. The CDC recommends actively washing your hands for a minimum a minimum of 20-seconds.
And since 2009, Bradley Corporation has conducted and published an annual Healthy Hand Washing Survey™. According to the company’s most recent survey conducted in January 2021, 57 percent of Americans are washing their hands six-or-more times a day. Compared to Bradley Corporation’s research published in spring 2020, that’s a decrease from the 78 percent of Americans who reported washing at that frequency when the survey was conducted that year. (It’s worth pointing out the latter data happened at the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic.)
It’s clear that proper handwashing technique is crucial to supporting good health for everyone in your household. The first step is to be sure everyone is washing their hands for an adequate amount of time! That’s where Time Timer comes in! The new Time Timer WASH is a touchless, visual handwashing timer designed to keep you focused on the task at hand (pun intended). This brilliant timer sits easily on a bathroom counter (or suctions to a bathroom mirror) and helps users track three stages of hand washing in a touchless, visual fashion. Along with its signature disappearing disc, the timer may be used with or without an audible alarm.
Useful for all ages, Time Timer WASH not only helps ensure clean hands, but can help address Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), germophobia (mysophobia), and general anxiety disorder associated with washing hands and pandemic anxiety. The Time Timer WASH cycle lasts for a total of 30 seconds and breaks hand washing into three simple steps:
- Soap (5 seconds)
- Scrub (20 seconds)
- Rinse (5 seconds)
Simply start by holding your hand in front of the Timer. No touching needed! Music and sound can be switched off and on. The sound can be used to help reinforce steps or the WASH timer can be run silently for sound sensitive environments or individuals. This video illustrates Time Timer WASH and features the music and sounds it uses. We also encourage you to download our free Handwashing Activity Guide created especially for educators (and parents)!
Streamline those nighttime routines!
If you’re a parent, doesn’t it feel like getting through a basic nighttime routine with young children can be an absolutely never-ending struggle? Well, Time Timer can help you put some more structure around this nightly cycle. As we’ve all been told, consistency is a key to reinforcing a habit or routine with our kids. With Time Timer, young children who do not yet grasp the passage of time can essentially “see” time segments. This may also apply to families who have special needs children or adults in the household, such as those with ADHD, autism, or other developmental delay.
If you like to issue a “warning” for how long until bedtime, let Time Timer help you out there too. Set the Time Timer PLUS 20 Minute for the full duration of 20 minutes and its signature colored disk disappears as the time passes. A simple glance at Time Timer will “show” your children how much time remains. And there will be no more arguments about telling time incorrectly – the proof is in the disappearing disk! Be doubly productive and announce to your children this time is to be used for cleaning-up their toys.
Once the children have made it to their bedrooms, use Time Timer to set limits for bedtime reading, stories, or other “wind down” activities stories before lights-out. Your young children will likely enjoy the new part of the bedtime routine, and before you know it, things will move along quite smoothly!
Pickup your rooms!!
A common refrain in most people’s houses, “Clean your room!” This can be a real battle – especially when it comes to keeping kids focused and working long enough to make a dent. Set Time Timer’s dial for a minimum time to be spent organizing toys or on other chores like sweeping, vacuuming, yard work, or other responsibilities. So, the next time your kids ask how much longer they need to do their chores – just point to Time Timer. With the Time Timer MOD – Home Edition, your children can even choose their favorite color of timer to help keep their room clean!
When it comes to the bigger stuff of life, Time Timer helps with that too. Taking those priorities, responsibilities, and everyday tasks, and breaking them down into manageable chunks of time is the key. And if you’re a visual learner, like many adults and children, the Time Timer can be your hero. Our innovative timekeeping tools will help keep you, your family, and children stay focused on what’s most important throughout the day.