Keeping school classrooms clean and as germ-free as possible helps create a safe learning environment for teachers and students. For teachers, being able to maintain clean classrooms can be tough, especially when they’re busy teaching, grading assignments, creating lesson plans, and handling other teaching tasks. Professional cleaning services from Enviro-Master can make it easier to eliminate germs and provide a healthy classroom environment throughout school buildings. Teachers can also use the following tips for maintaining a clean classroom.

1. Hand Sanitizer Station

Children can easily pick up and spread germs as they touch surfaces and objects in classrooms. This can increase the risk of having colds and other illnesses spread among students and teachers. Children should wash their hands with soap and water when they get dirty, especially after using restrooms and before eating. Hand washing is a highly effective way to reduce germs. However, it’s not always convenient or possible for students to wash with soap and water after touching objects and surfaces in the classroom.

Hand sanitizer stations provide the ideal solution for eliminating germs and helping children keep their hands clean. These stations can be set up in classrooms or other areas in schools, so that students and staff can have clean hands on a regular basis and reduce the spread of germs and illnesses. Hand sanitizer, such as antibacterial sanitizer, is able to kill germs that cause sickness. Having stations filled with hand sanitizer in classrooms and other areas makes it easy for children and adults in the building to stop the spread of germs.

Enviro-Master offers antibacterial hand sanitizer and hand soap dispensers for schools. These dispensers are serviced by Enviro-Master’s health and safety technicians regularly to ensure that they are in good condition. Schools can place these hand sanitizer stations in convenient areas, such as in classrooms or just outside of them, in the front office area, or near cafeterias. These dispensers can be moved as needed, so that they’re always in areas that are frequently used. With these dispensers, schools can stay as germ-free as possible on a daily basis, which can help reduce student and staff absences while also keeping classrooms and other areas healthy.

2. Cleanup Time

For teachers, finding time to clean the classroom on a regular basis can be difficult. Although a janitorial team might clean in the morning or after school each day, germs can build up throughout the day as students move around, talk, and touch surfaces and objects. This can make it easy for viruses and other germs to spread from one student to another, potentially leading to illness. Having students help clean up during the day is a great way to keep classrooms cleaner and healthier. The key to doing this is making sure it’s a fun activity for children to participate in.

Teachers can come up with games or challenges for students that involve doing cleaning tasks. Rewarding students for cleaning their desks or tables can encourage them to keep these surfaces clean on a regular basis. For example, students who clean the most objects might get a sticker or another small reward. To make cleaning times even more fun, teachers might want to play some music while students clean their desks and other surfaces around the room. This helps create a pleasant atmosphere that students can enjoy as they clean.

Making cleaning a routine part of the day can also motivate students to keep desks and other areas clean. Teachers might have students do some cleaning before going out for recess or before going to lunch. This can help students get into the habit of cleaning up every day.

3. Plan Ahead for Illnesses

Although classrooms should be kept clean on a regular basis, cleaning and disinfecting is even more important during certain times. Planning ahead to make sure your classrooms remain healthy can help lower the risk of illnesses among students and staff. While illnesses can occur at any time, the risk of having them spread is higher at times. For example, schools should plan ahead to make sure classrooms are thoroughly cleaned on a regular basis during cold and flu season. This season, which runs roughly from September through May each year, is when cold and flu viruses tend to occur more often. Children can easily spread germs and get sick during this season when they sneeze, cough, touch contaminated surfaces, and touch their faces. This can lead to increased absences and an unhealthy learning environment.

Using a disinfectant to wipe down surfaces can help eliminate cold and flu viruses and other germs. However, you should avoid using any disinfectants that contain toxic or harsh ingredients, since these can be harmful. Non-toxic products can be used to disinfect surfaces and objects in the classroom to remove viruses and bacteria. Staff should keep wipes or other non-toxic cleaning products on hand to make it easy to quickly clean surfaces throughout the day. This helps prevent germs from building up on surfaces. Tissues, paper towels, hand sanitizer, and hand soap should be readily available during cold and flu season or when other illnesses are occurring to reduce the spread of germs.

When planning ahead for illnesses, keep in mind that pink eye, strep throat, and other bacterial infections can occur throughout the school year. Having classrooms deep cleaned regularly can help reduce the spread of these illnesses, especially when cleaning products containing antibacterial properties are used.

4. Clean Desks and Tables Daily

Desks and tables in classrooms can quickly become covered in bacteria, viruses, and other germs throughout the day. Dust and other allergens can also accumulate on these surfaces, as well as other surfaces in the classroom. This can lead to sneezing, coughing, and other symptoms that create an unhealthy environment. Taking time to dust and wipe down desks and tables each day or multiple times a day helps prevent this from occurring, resulting in a healthy classroom. This can make it easier for children to concentrate on their studies and lower the risk of absences.

Teachers or staff can keep cleaning supplies handy to clean desks and tables each day. For example, wipes can be used to eliminate dust and germs on these surfaces. Desks and tables can be wiped down before class starts, before and after eating in the classroom, and at the end of the day. Having students store supplies inside desks, if possible, rather than on them helps reduce the presence of dust, which can make cleaning these surfaces easier.

Keeping desks clean helps reduce the risk of illness for individual students. Cleaning classroom tables where a few or more children sit is even more important. Germs are more likely to build up on these surfaces as multiple children touch them. Tables should be cleared off and wiped down before class and at the end of the day. If different groups of students use the same table throughout the day, teachers or staff can wipe these surfaces down in between. Disinfecting tables and desks with safe, non-toxic products can go a long way toward reducing classroom illnesses. Keep in mind that Enviro-Master offers cleaning products that help desks and tables remain germ-free.

5. When in Doubt, Call in the Professionals

Using hand sanitizer and cleaning classroom surfaces on a regular basis can help reduce germs, but what if classrooms still aren’t clean enough? Enviro-Master has a team of cleaning professionals ready to provide you with deep clean classroom services. Our health and safety technicians use electrostatic spraying to remove germs and make classrooms as clean as possible. This electrostatic spraying solution does not contain any harsh or toxic ingredients, making it safe to use in settings where children spend hours each day. This cleaning solution is designed to remain on surfaces for long periods of time, which helps eliminate greater amounts of bacteria and other germs. With this cleaning method, you can count on classrooms and other areas in your school remaining germ-free, even during cold and flu season. Our cleaning experts are able to spray areas that are hard to reach, which helps ensure that classrooms offer a healthy environment for students and teachers.

Our trained technicians have the tools and knowledge needed to achieve a healthy classroom environment. We offer convenient scheduling for our cleaning services, so that you can choose a time that works best and minimizes or avoids classroom disruption. When you need classrooms, cafeterias, offices, and other areas of your school deep cleaned, Enviro-Master is here to help.

At Enviro-Master, we have other services available to clean schools, including tile and grout deep cleaning and drain treatment services. These services remove stubborn germs and debris and eliminate unpleasant odors. We also offer restroom cleaning services using safe, non-toxic cleaning solutions and restroom products to help reduce germs, including toilet bowl clips, seat covers, disposal bins, and urinal mats and screens. Our restroom services also include installing air care products, refilling dispensers as needed, and handling other tasks to keep school restrooms sanitary.

Learn More About Our Commercial Cleaning Services for Schools

If you would like more details on our professional cleaning services for schools, please contact Enviro-Master. We can provide you with additional information on our classroom cleaning services, hand sanitizer dispensers, and more. Our cleaning experts can deep clean classrooms for added protection against viruses, bacteria, and other germs during cold and flu season or on a regular basis. Our health and safety technicians look forward to helping your school stay as healthy as possible.