Like many other people, I’ve gotten into the habit of washing my hands every time I come back home.  You never know what you’ve touched out there, and you don’t want to get sick from it, so off you go to the bathroom or kitchen sink to do your duty.  If you’re like most people, you run the water until it’s warm, wet your hands and rub a bar of soap between them.  I did a little research online and found out that it makes no difference whether you wash your hands with hot or with cold water.  Studies have shown that they get just as clean either way.  But how long should you wash your hands to get rid of the bacteria and viruses that may be on them?  The answer is 30 seconds, but few people will watch a clock while they wash their hands.  However, there’s an easy way you can time your hand washing.  Just sing “Happy Birthday” to yourself three times, which takes 30 seconds.  You know – “Happy birthday to you.  Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear (your name). Happy birthday to you.”  By the way, if you start washing your hands every time you get home, it will take 30 days before it becomes a habit.  After that it will be something that you always do without thinking.

Click on the audio recording below to hear the above lesson.

Vocabulary:

habit:  something you do all the time without thinking
come back:  return
duty:  thing you must do
bar:  solid piece that fits in your hand
research:  finding information
online:  on the Internet
found out:  got the information, discovered
whether:  if
studies:  scientific methods to find the truth
just as:  equally
get rid of:  make go away
bacteria:  tiny one-celled pieces of life
viruses:  tiny pieces of life that reproduce only inside the cell of an animal

Pronunciation Exercise:  Listen and repeat the vocabulary above on the audio file below.

Short video on hand washing:

© 2013 Ambien Malecot