I need ideas on how to hygienically distribute something like Vaseline or Aquaphor for my students to combat dry, chapped lips

Product Question
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EDIT Thank you so much for all the replies! I posted this during my prep time, and then I finished teaching my classes for the day. I didn’t think I would get so many great ideas. I would like to address a few things:**

1. I teach in a low socioeconomic area, and I teach English to multilingual students. Many of my students are refugees or who are new to the US. Not everyone has money to pitch in, and I wouldn’t want to put that on my students or their families.

2. I’m sure if I asked admin/the school nurse for help, they would, but honestly, I don’t mind spending money on a tub of Vaseline for them.

3. For those who commented about not paying for it out of my own money, we do get a humble budget each year, but we are only allowed to use certain vendors that sell primarily school/office supplies, so even if I wanted to order something from my budget (which has already been spent for the year), I wouldn’t be able to add something like petroleum jelly.

4. I have different groups of students throughout the day who all share the same desks, so buying them a chapstick to keep in their desk probably wouldn’t be ideal, but I do appreciate the idea!

5. I think my best bet is to go with the Q-tips or coffee stirrers/popsicle sticks. I checked in our science supply closet, and we have boxes of popsicle sticks that are from a curriculum we don’t use anymore, so I have taken a box. We also have a composting bin at our school, so I will be adding the sticks to the composter once we’ve used them.

Thanks to everyone who pitched in their ideas; I truly appreciate you taking the time out of your day to comment.

Hi everyone,

Sorry if this is an odd request, but I want to help my students. I teach in the New England area, and each year around this time, my 5th & 6th graders suffer from dry skin and chapped lips. I’ve got the dry skin issue covered as I keep a pump of unscented lotion on a table by my classroom door. It is well-used, especially after students wash their hands. The issue I’m facing now is chapped lips. Last year, it got so bad that I bought a squeeze tube of Aquaphor and would squeeze it onto a popsicle stick for my students to scrape off and apply to their lips, using a new stick for each student each time. The problem was that I was throwing so many popsicle sticks away, and I didn’t like all the waste I was creating. I thought maybe there was a product that came with a pump like the Vanicream tub, but from what I’ve searched, a product like that for Vaseline or Aquaphor doesn’t exist, so I’m a bit at a loss.

Does anyone have ideas on how I can hygienically give my students something for their chapped lips while also creating the least amount of waste possible?

Thanks!

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Combining two of your ideas: Cut the coffee stirrers in half

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came here to say this! I’ve used halved coffee stirrers for brow/upper lip waxing before

4

I like to use q tips. Nice and soft for applying aquafor and since they’re made of cotton and paper, it’s compostable.

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Tbh this is a negligible waste. It’s not plastic. I would do a massive bulk jar of Vaseline and look for tiny popsicle sticks. You’d waste way more on individual chapsticks they would inevitably lose.

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Maybe wood coffee stirrers

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Yes. Hobby craft stores sell miniature “pop sticks” in all sizes. Dirt is cheap and dozens per pkg.

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Maybe a local dentist would donate enough individual chapsticks for the whole class? It’s not quite as good as Aquaphor, but it would help. They could keep them in a desk or bag and reapply when needed.

The dentist also gets to promote a bit.

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We’d get this on sports teams when I was in high school and we would get our swag kit for the year! Someone’s family member was probably a dentist in this case. But! Lots of dentists already have branded chapsticks they buy in bulk when they give away toothbrushes during your visit. Email the dentist’s office as a class sponsorship opportunity, and put up a little piece of paper in your classroom “Dr whoever dentistry proudly supports classroom 123” and then if they do sponsor have the kids write a thank you card.

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Have you spoken to your student’s parents or to the administration? If kids in your class have chapped lips and hands so bad that it’s impacting their well-being, I bet a lot of parents would be willing to buy their child a little tube of Vaseline.

If parents are unwilling or unable, the administration should step in. Perhaps a humidifier or two in the classroom would stop everyone’s skin from drying out.

As far as products go, I think a tub of Aquaphor and mini tongue depressors is about as hygienic as it gets for mass distribution.

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My thoughts as well. They should just say something.

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Honestly, I wonder if OP reached out to the individual companies with their problem and if they would just donate a box to the class. There was a tip on another sub about writing to companies when you get engaged and asking for swag. I feel like this is similar, but potentially more impactful and of course good PR for the company.

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You could just squeeze/spoon the stuff onto some squares of paper. Lip balm is thick enough that it wouldn’t seep through

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Do they keep the same desks? Could you just buy a bunch of these and write their names on them?

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I have heard of some brands that will cause your lips to dry out the more you use them (ironically), YMMV so double-check the brand! (not sure about Chap-Ice, I’ve never heard of this one)

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How about squeezing the Aquaphor onto the back of their hand or something? The fingers are the grossest part imo. They can even use hand sanitizer before/you can disinfect the opening at the end of the day or whatever works best for you.

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The backs of the hands are also dirty.

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What’s your budget? I just checked and you can get a 40-pack of generic lip balms for $8.99 on Amazon

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Generic lip balms usually really suck for actual chapped lips though… I understand why op prefers Vaseline

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Yes because Vaseline is a barrier cream. It does not penetrate or moisturize. Usually used on top of a cream.