Coronavirus: Experiment with pepper, soap, water teaches kids importance of washing hands

An experiment which teaches children the importance of washing hands has gone viral, as teachers and parents share videos of their engaged kids.

An experiment which teaches children the importance of washing hands has proved popular online as teachers and parents share videos of their engaged kids.

One video, shared by social media influencer Kelly Rose Sarno on Facebook, shows her doing the experiment with her children.

It begins with the mother sprinkling pepper, in which she calls germs, into a bowl of water.

She then gets her son to stick his finger in the "germs" and when he pulls it out of the water he finds that the pepper is stuck to him.

Sarno then gets her son to mix a different finger in soap before he places it back in the bowl.

As soon as his finger lands in the water, the "germs" disperse.

His parents then point out that the pepper did not stick and told him "that's why it's important to wash your hands".

Since the video along with many others have gone viral online, Kiwi parents and teachers have tried out the experiment with kids.

One mother in Wanaka, Vera Alves, told the Herald she received a video from her 3-year-old daughter's daycare centre of the soap/pepper demonstration being done by one of her teachers.

An experiment which teaches children the importance of washing hands has gone viral, as teachers and parents share videos of their engaged kids.

"I was really happy with this proactive take on teaching the kids, even that young, to understand the importance of washing their hands," Alves said.

"When the teacher asked, in the end, if they should wash their hands with soap, based on what they'd seen, there was a choir of "yes!".

Another parent, Chris Marriner, said he tried the experiment with his 5-year-old son and found he was instantly engaged.

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"He understood why we've doubled down on telling him to wash his hands," he said.

"It also made it fun. My wife and I are grateful for anything that can help him not get too anxious about the virus.

"Kids pick up so much and we know he can sense that things have changed for the worse."

According to Cool Science Experiments Online, the pepper spreads due to surface tension.

"When you sprinkled the pepper on the water, most (if not all) of it stayed floating at the surface of the water. This is because the pepper flakes are so light that the surface tension of the water keeps them floating on top," the site reads.

"However, when you add a little dish soap, the surface tension of the water is disturbed. The water molecules move away from the soap taking the pepper with them. This causes the pepper to move or run away from the centre of the plate."