By ANN MORRISON

Strongsville Post associate editor

Strongsville High School senior Divya Raj is hoping that she can make a positive impact on the lives of young children. She recently spent a day at the Family Life Center of Berea teaching 4- to 6-year-olds about the importance of health and hygiene. Her project was for her Girl Scout Gold Award, the highest honor a Girl Scout can receive.

On Thursday, March 3, Raj and six other high school girls spent their parent-teacher conference day at the school, teaching a program they called "Healthy Hands Helping Hands." They set up five different stations to reinforce good habits and also have some fun with the young students.

"The children really enjoyed it. They seemed really enthusiastic about the projects and they seemed to learn a lot," Raj said. "It's so important for young children to start forming good habits so that they can have healthy lives. This is practical information that they can use every single day."

All of the materials that were used for the project were donated by local businesses, sought out by Raj.

The first station was making first aid kits. The volunteer helped the children make their own kits using Band-Aids and gauze, and the children had the chance to practice applying Band-Aids to stuffed animals.

The second station was handwashing, where the volunteer read the book "Hooray for Handwashing" and taught the children how long to wash their hands, as well as when they should do it, such as after playing outside, after sneezing, and after using the restroom.

The third station was an example of a doctor's office. The volunteer showed the children medical equipment such as a stethoscope, thermometer and blood pressure cuff, and taught them how to find their pulse.

"The goal of this station was to show them that going to the doctor isn't scary, and there's a lot you can learn about your body with simple tests," Raj said.

The fourth station was dental hygiene. There, the children learned how to properly brush and floss their teeth, as well as what foods and drinks promote healthy teeth. Each child received a new toothbrush and floss to take home with them.

The final station was traffic safety. The volunteer in this station taught the children basic traffic signs, such as Stop, Yield, Railroad Crossing and Pedestrian Crossing.

The rotation took about an hour for each class to complete, and the volunteers taught the lessons to four different classes. Along with Raj, the volunteers were Michelle Drabish, Allie Wrabel, Mahima Venkatesh, Amanda Richardson, Katie Redinger and Hillary Rizk.

"The volunteers were absolutely fantastic with the kids. They really made it possible for me to do this type of project for my Gold Award," Raj said.

The staff at the school also appreciated the volunteers' efforts.

"The things they covered are things the teachers incorporate in their lessons, so it was good reinforcement for the students," said Stephanie Thomas, site coordinator for the Family Life Center.

Now that her project is completed, Raj must make a scrapbook about it and present it to the Girl Scout Council, which will decide if it meets all of their requirements. The Gold Award is equivalent to a Boy Scout earning their Eagle Scout Award.

Raj is a member of Troop 108, and has been in Girl Scouts since she was in first grade.