Wash privates and bottom
Reaching around with a cloth in one hand while bracing with the other takes more room than an ordinary shower offers. The steps below show both how to stand and what to do, one move at a time.
♀Rinse and wash
A child sits on the toilet holding a yellow sponge in one hand and pouring water from a blue cup with the other.
♀Wash the bottom
A person stands in the bathtub surrounded by foam and washes the bottom with a yellow sponge in each hand.
♀Wash private parts
A child stands in the shower and washes the private area with a blue washcloth.
About this visual support
A shower corner is rarely bigger than a doormat, and yet that is where a child has to switch both tools and posture several times over. The cloth needs wetting, the body needs turning, and one hand is often holding the wall while the other works. Space decides more here than technique does.
It is seldom the washing itself that stalls, it is the joins between the moves. Visual support that shows the position, not only the action, makes those joins visible. Put a stool or a non-slip mat in the shower so your child can sit down for the part that needs reaching behind, instead of balancing; plenty of children manage on the first try once there is something to lean on.
If you want the same sequence on your phone before a trip or a camp, Routined holds visual schedules and a timer together and can be tried for fourteen days at no cost. The pictures on this page are free to print.