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Genius Teacher’s ‘Bread Trick’ Shows Kids Why They Need To Wash Hands, And It’s Disgustingly Brilliant
As kids, our parents drill it into our brains. As adults, we see it posted near bathroom mirrors everywhere. We’re constantly reminded of the importance of washing our hands, yet sometimes we still ask ourselves if it’s really such a big deal. One teacher has come up with a brilliant, albeit slightly nauseating experiment that shows the potency of germs in full view, and it just might save a few sinuses this flu season.
Courtney Lee Simpson, a teacher from Tennessee, presented her class with 3 slices of bread. They placed one in a plastic baggy using gloves, the other with freshly washed hands, and sealed up the final one after passing it around to every student in the room – therefore making it ‘dirty.’ When the students came back to check on the bread a few days later, the evidence was more than clear.
Scroll down to see the ‘bread trick’ for yourself, and share this with someone you know who might be slacking on their hand washing!
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What do you think ?
Lurchie 8 years ago
I see the point of this exercise, and it is clever. However, we as a society have become so germophobic as to prevent the process of the body's ability to build up a natural resistance through gradual exposure.
Mistrz Varflock 8 years ago
For some reason I read "germophobic" as "disliking people from Germany" at first...
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Ristina Nielsen 8 years ago
Illustrative BUT the difference between between "newly washed" and "unwashed" is a bit askew. By a factor around 20. A more correct result would be "1: pass a slice around, unwashed hands" and then let the whole class wash hands and then "2: pass a slice aruond, newly washed hands".
Leslie Jordaan 8 years ago
Humans Carry More Bacterial Cells than Human Ones. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-humans-carry-more-bacterial-cells-than-human-ones/
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Black Dahlia 8 years ago
This is bad science. The first two samples were handled by one person apiece, but the third slice of bread was handled by the whole class. Also, bread needs no handling to be contaminated with mold spores. Plus, bread contaminated with mold spores is not harmful to eat in the least - they die in the stomach.
Melody Lanzatella 8 years ago
When I was in second grade, my teacher was older than dirt (so to speak). One day she handed out toothpicks to every child. Then she told us to use the toothpicks to clean underneath our fingernails, letting the crud from underneath them collect on our desks. After we were all done, we each had an impressive pile of crud on our desks. Then she directed us to "Eat that pile of crud!" We all looked at each other, shocked! "Eeeew! No!!!" we were all screeching! She then wisely told us, "That is what you are eating when you bite your fingernails." It really made an impression on us!
Marvilyn L. Lyons 8 years ago
Stella, thank you for contacting Donna about her post. Thank you Donna Gill Allen for reposting my original pictures/experiment that my 2nd graders did. You helped make it go viral:) Well, you made it go viral. I initiated this experiment as a LTI. My students used inquiry skills to determine importance of hand washing. This is something we graphed and documented in our journals. Thank you so much for sharing all the way from FL to NC!
Deborah Niven 8 years ago
Stuff like this is frustrating to me because only half of the story is being told here and I hope this teacher is not teaching science or physiology because it shows how much they don't know. Probably a good object lesson because so many people still need to be told to wash their hands, for obvious reasons. Remember though not all bacteria are pathogenic (disease causing). In fact, they are very important in maintaining the health of your body. Without Lactobacillus in your body (females), you would have yeast infections all the time. If you did not have certain organisms that colonize your intestines and gut you would be much sicker. Your normal flora keeps the bad flora out unless something is done to upset the natural balance if your body (such as having too many antibiotics or doing cleanses). Also there is fungus on that piece of bread, that is not a bacteria (the green stuff). It is most likely Aspergillis not generally pathogenic unless you are immune compromised.
Lurchie 8 years ago
I see the point of this exercise, and it is clever. However, we as a society have become so germophobic as to prevent the process of the body's ability to build up a natural resistance through gradual exposure.
Mistrz Varflock 8 years ago
For some reason I read "germophobic" as "disliking people from Germany" at first...
Load More Replies... Ristina Nielsen 8 years ago
Illustrative BUT the difference between between "newly washed" and "unwashed" is a bit askew. By a factor around 20. A more correct result would be "1: pass a slice around, unwashed hands" and then let the whole class wash hands and then "2: pass a slice aruond, newly washed hands".
Leslie Jordaan 8 years ago
Humans Carry More Bacterial Cells than Human Ones. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-humans-carry-more-bacterial-cells-than-human-ones/
Load More Replies... Black Dahlia 8 years ago
This is bad science. The first two samples were handled by one person apiece, but the third slice of bread was handled by the whole class. Also, bread needs no handling to be contaminated with mold spores. Plus, bread contaminated with mold spores is not harmful to eat in the least - they die in the stomach.
Melody Lanzatella 8 years ago
When I was in second grade, my teacher was older than dirt (so to speak). One day she handed out toothpicks to every child. Then she told us to use the toothpicks to clean underneath our fingernails, letting the crud from underneath them collect on our desks. After we were all done, we each had an impressive pile of crud on our desks. Then she directed us to "Eat that pile of crud!" We all looked at each other, shocked! "Eeeew! No!!!" we were all screeching! She then wisely told us, "That is what you are eating when you bite your fingernails." It really made an impression on us!
Marvilyn L. Lyons 8 years ago
Stella, thank you for contacting Donna about her post. Thank you Donna Gill Allen for reposting my original pictures/experiment that my 2nd graders did. You helped make it go viral:) Well, you made it go viral. I initiated this experiment as a LTI. My students used inquiry skills to determine importance of hand washing. This is something we graphed and documented in our journals. Thank you so much for sharing all the way from FL to NC!
Deborah Niven 8 years ago
Stuff like this is frustrating to me because only half of the story is being told here and I hope this teacher is not teaching science or physiology because it shows how much they don't know. Probably a good object lesson because so many people still need to be told to wash their hands, for obvious reasons. Remember though not all bacteria are pathogenic (disease causing). In fact, they are very important in maintaining the health of your body. Without Lactobacillus in your body (females), you would have yeast infections all the time. If you did not have certain organisms that colonize your intestines and gut you would be much sicker. Your normal flora keeps the bad flora out unless something is done to upset the natural balance if your body (such as having too many antibiotics or doing cleanses). Also there is fungus on that piece of bread, that is not a bacteria (the green stuff). It is most likely Aspergillis not generally pathogenic unless you are immune compromised.
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