Diarrhoea
Diarrhoea causes dehydration and severe diarrhoea kills millions of children worldwide.
Older children can learn and share knowledge about the causes of diarrhoea, the dangers of dehydration and to raise awareness about the need for rehydration, washing hands and other important hygiene practices.
Read our Top Ten Messages on Diarrhoea for children to learn and share. Scroll down to see ideas on what children can do to understand, find out more, take action and reflect on this topic.
Use the links below to browse our FREE resources to help children learn more, share their knowledge and become agents of change.
10 Messages on
Diarrhoea
- Diarrhoea is watery poo that happens three or more times a day. It can lead to dangerous dehydration.
- Diarrhoea is caused by tiny germs that are too small to see. Germs live all around us! Germs travel easily from our fingers, food, drinks, cups and spoons and into our mouths and bodies.
- Diarrhoea causes us to lose vital fluids from our bodies. We need to replace fluids and salts to keep the body strong and prevent serious illness or even death from dehydration.
- A child with dehydration can have a dry mouth and tongue, sunken eyes, no tears, loose skin, cool hands and feet. Babies can have a sunken soft spot on the head. Spot these signs? Take them to a clinic urgently.
- ORS stands for Oral Rehydration Solution, the best drink to prevent and treat dehydration. Find packets, to make ORS, at clinics and shops.
- Prevent dehydration by using ORS as soon as diarrhoea begins. Mix ORS correctly with clean, safe water following the instructions on the packet. Breast milk is best for babies.
- Children doing more than three watery poos a day or bloody poo or who start to vomit too MUST be seen by a health worker. Give ORS or other fluids while waiting to be seen.
- Zinc tablets can reduce the amount of poo and can help children recover more quickly from diarrhoea. Health workers instruct us how to take Zinc with ORS. Give fluids too, to prevent dehydration.
- Young children with diarrhoea need every day tasty, mashed food and soups as often as possible to make their body stronger.
- Prevent germs spreading! Develop everyday habits like proper handwashing with soap, good hygiene after toilet, before eating and preparing food. Breastfeed babies and immunise against measles and rotavirus.
Children can learn, collect & share these messages!
While teaching these messages, encourage children to…
MAKE their own preventing Diarrhoea Messages using their own words in their own language!
LEARN these messages so they never forget them!
ADD these messages to their collection!
SHARE these messages with other children and their families!
If your class or group is struggling to stay connected and engaged, we have loads of ideas for ideas to help them! Have a look at Closing Games & Activities.
Use the questions/discussion topics below to help children to memorise the messages and really understand them.
What can children make?
MAKE a simple fly trap to keep flies that carry germs away from food.
MAKE a poster to show others the danger signs of diarrhoea so they can get help when they need to.
CREATE a short play about when they need to call the health worker to help.
MAKE a snakes and ladders game to help them learn how to stop diarrhoea.
MAKE first aid kits for home and school and include ORS.
What can children do?
ROLE PLAY as two mothers talking about how to help their babies with diarrhoea get better.
PLAY a labelling game to test their knowledge of all the signs of dehydration in a baby.
LOOK at how plants need water to grow – find out what happens when plants don’t have water.
HELP prevent diarrhoea by keeping their bodies and their homes clean.
PLAY the handshaking game to see how quickly germs can spread.
What can children ask?
HOW long were their parents breastfed? How long were they breastfed? Is there a difference? Why?
HOW to treat diarrhoea at home with ORS and zinc?
WHAT are the danger signs that mean they need to get help from a health worker?
WHAT drinks are safe when they have diarrhoea?
HOW can they make water safe to drink by using sunlight?
WHICH drinks are safe when they don’t have any ORS?
WHAT are dysentery and cholera and how do they spread?
Download these free materials now to help children learn and share these
essential health messages. See our free resource section for more!
