Okay. Here's my dilemma. My third grader has Clorox Wipes listed on her school supply list. My mother leaned against a counter wiped with these before it dried and stained/bleached her shirt. So I checked out the warnings on a container and it said "Keep out of reach of children." It also stated it was very harmful to humans and domestic animals, to keep out of contact with eyes, that it could stain clothing, and that you should wash your hands with soap and water after every use.

Now I don't know about your children, but I know my children are rubbing their eyes or have their hands in their mouth or something quite often. I'm just not sure I am comfortable having my dd(8) use these at school.

I am thinking of calling the principal of the school and talking with her to find out exactly why the students need these and to find out if they are aware of the warnings on the wipes.

What are some of your opinions on this? Am I just being paranoid?

By Paulas on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 12:06 am:

As a teacher I think that perhaps I would maybe use these if there is a listening center in the room or a computer center. Both types of centers require students to use headphones so maybe the teacher wants to wipe down the headphones b4 allowing another student to use them to prevent head lice.

I see nothing wrong with calling the school and asking to speak to the secretary or the teacher. I would explain your concerns, find out why they are needed and if the reason suits you fine I would suggest you deliever them yourself to the teacher rather than have you dd take them.

By Luvn29 on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 12:20 am:

see that is kind of the thing. I don't mind a bit buying them and taking them if the teacher is the one using them to disinfect. That's fine with me. I just don't feel that the children should be using them.

There may be a listening center in the room, but there is a separate computer lab where they do lab and that, so I don't know. I will check with the school, I think.

Thanks so much!

By Ginny~moderator on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 06:02 am:

I would also be concerned, with the strong chemicals in the wipes, that a child may have an allergic or skin reaction if s/he comes in contact before it dries, as well as your very legitimate concern about children touching their faces, eyes, etc. with this stuff maybe on their hands.

I would definitely talk to the teacher and the principal about your concerns, and point out the warnings on the product label. I personally don't think this is a good idea unless the teacher is the only person using them and has a list of precautions s/he plans to take when using them.

By Ginny~moderator on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 06:04 am:

IMO, I doubt very much using Clorox wipes is going to do much to cut down on the kinds of illnesses children pass among each other in a school setting, unles the teacher intends to be wiping surfaces down every time a child coughs or sneezes. It may be an okay idea for specific equipment that comes close to the mouth, but I don't like the idea of using it on surfaces in general in what is not really a controlled setting (in terms of whether children touch surfaces while they are still wet), and don't think it will make much of a difference.

By Kaye on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 10:17 am:

When I taught every morning and sometimes at lunch I did wipe down all my students desks. It did a huge deal to cut down on how often my kids got sick. It also really helped me. I had a child with impetigo, read contagious! And the homeroom teacher had issues with other kids, I had none, but I also was pretty meticulous about cleaning on a regular basis (light swithces and pencil sharpener too). I would call and ask, as a teacher it would be nice to have these provided, but I would never ask the kids to use them.

By Mommyathome on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 11:13 am:

I would call the school.
I would be fine with "donating" a box of the clorox wipes to the teacher if she/he is the one using them.
But, I would not want all of the kids to each have their own box. That could cause lots of issues!!
I'm interested to know what you find out!

By Coopaveryben on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 09:43 pm:

We used them in my sons classroom last year and we did used them when the kids were gone. They had plenty of time to dry, etc. We all donated 2 boxes at the beginning of the year, the teacher kept them locked up. I have to say his teacher was pretty diligent about these last year and hand sanitizer, it was his first year in school and he was sick once...and got that from church.

By Luvn29 on Tuesday, August 10, 2004 - 11:12 pm:

Well, I called and spoke to the principal today. She said that she would not want the children using them and she would speak to the teachers and have one call me and discuss this with me.

When my daughter's teacher called, she said the principal had spoken with them and that she did not want the students using them. So the teachers will be the ones to use them away from the students. I apologized for being "difficult" but told her I was just concerned about some of the issues with them. She said she was glad I questioned it and brought it to their attention and that kids will be kids and their hands will be around their faces and such.

So, problem taken care of. And I am glad I called, because it seems that if I hadn't brought this up, the children would have been the ones wiping their desks down and such...

By Kate on Thursday, September 16, 2004 - 08:19 pm:

Sigh....now *I* have this issue. Yesterday I noticed a tub of these on my DD's teacher's desk. I told DD to stay away from them and asked her if anyone had ever used them. She said no. Well, today she came home and said they had been asked to clean their desks with them after they had done some chalk project. She said the teacher told them not to touch their eyes and that it would stain their clothes. So they obviously are aware of the problems with these things, but are still asking the kids to use them. We're brand new at this school and I hate to make waves, but I sure don't want chemicals in her eyes or mouth and I don't want all her new clothes wrecked, either!! Why not REGULAR BABY WIPES??? They would sure clean up chalk! Advice? This is an elementary school and my daughter is in third grade, but they switch classes like in high school and all the classes have the wipes. This occurred in the room the first graders spend the majority of their day in. The teacher did not tell the kids to wash their hands afterward!

By Ginny~moderator on Friday, September 17, 2004 - 10:14 am:

If it were me, I would talk to the principal and tell the principal you are considering sending a letter to the school and each of your child's teachers stating that you do not want your daughter to be handling Clorox Wipes or any similar product at any time, and that your decision is based on the safety instructions on the product package.

I am appalled that they are so happily ignoring the safety issues.

By Kate on Friday, September 17, 2004 - 10:43 am:

I spoke with the principal this morning and he said the wipes are only used by the teachers. I informed him that the spelling teacher had had the kids use the wipes themselves yesterday and he was surprised. He said he would make sure the teachers know they are only for the themselves to use and not the kids. So, we shall see. My daughter knows to be cautious and when I pick her up today I will instruct her as to what to do if they still ask her to use them. I will tell her to politely say something like, 'I'm sorry but my mom talked to the principal about these wipes and he said we students are not allowed to use them, only the teachers can use them'. That should be enough to at least make the teacher pause and I'll tell her flat out that if she has to, to tell the teacher her mom says she is not allowed to touch those wipes. The teacher who made the kids use them yesterday is new, but still....Clorox Wipes to wipe up CHALK?? Plain water and paper towel would have been plenty, and would have been cheaper, too!

By Boxzgrl on Friday, September 17, 2004 - 11:18 am:

Why not good old Lysol Disinfecting spray and a few paper towels?

By Kittycat_26 on Friday, September 17, 2004 - 12:32 pm:

Chalk?

How about good old water and paper towels? It's only chalk!

By Mommyathome on Friday, September 17, 2004 - 04:04 pm:

I think baby wipes are great!! They could even get the cheap brand. They are wet and would be great for chalk and other small messes. And, they are much safer than bleach wipes.

I'll have to ask my DD if they use the clorox wipes at her school. I haven't noticed any while I've been there.

By Amecmom on Friday, September 17, 2004 - 04:09 pm:

Antibacterial Wet Ones are also good. They are a bit more expensive, but if the teacher is going to have the children use them, then they are much safer.
Ame

By Unschoolmom on Friday, September 17, 2004 - 04:47 pm:

With so many kids with different concerns and people with chemical sensitivies...Why not make some vinegar wipes? I use vinegar to disinfect (if that's the concerns rather than to just wipe something clean). Well, still go with bleach when wiping down a counter after doing something with raw meat but there aren't many grade school kids chopping up a chicken I hope.
An idea anyhow.

By Cocoabutter on Saturday, September 18, 2004 - 03:27 am:

It wouldn't hurt to casually double check with the principal and ask him if he spoke with the teacher. That might ease your mind a bit at this point.

By Audreyj on Saturday, September 18, 2004 - 12:36 pm:

VINEGAR to disinfect?!

I never heard of that, my kids have allergies, I'll give that a try. Thanks!

By Unschoolmom on Saturday, September 18, 2004 - 12:58 pm:

Further to the vinegar, if you give your counter a swipe of vinegar and then a swipe of peroxide (I've assumed you don't mix them) that will kill more germs then just bleach.
It's vinegar that they used at the airports in mats for passengers to walk through when the there was the big hoof and mouth disease scare in the UK a few years ago. Our local wildlife park still makes every visitor walk through it before a visit so I imagine it's pretty effective. Geez, and it's used to kill molds and bacteria when pckling too isn't it, to preserve the pickles?