Dragon Kids Land
Waitlist

Soapy Count to Twenty

Palms, backs, thumbs and fingertips, then count to twenty while you scrub. A handwashing song that times the scrub for you.

Ages 2–6Everyday routines2:32Video and moves

Play a 27-second sample

Listen in full

  • SpotifyComing soon
  • YouTubeComing soon
  • Apple MusicComing soon
Children with foamy hands raised as a big number 20 appears on screen.
A still from the Soapy Count to Twenty video. Animation made with AI tools.

What this song is about

Soapy Count to Twenty turns handwashing into a game children can follow step by step: water on, one pump of soap, palm to palm, the backs of the hands, criss-cross fingers, thumbs and fingertips. Then the music slows down for the most important part, a count from one to twenty while everyone keeps scrubbing. The count is set at one number every two beats, which lasts about twenty seconds, the scrubbing time public health guidance recommends.

Children learn the order of the steps from the song itself, so after a few days they start doing it without being reminded. The last verse covers rinsing and drying with a towel, and the bridge with the Dragon lists the moments to wash: before a snack, after play and after the potty. Play it at the sink at home or in nursery, or sing the counting part on its own when you need a quick twenty-second timer.

Sung and danced with the Dragon, our mascot who learns new things alongside children.

Learn the moves

Each step shows when it first comes up in the song. Every move works standing or sitting down.

  1. Children and the Dragon at a row of sinks, holding their thumbs up.
    Every finger, every thumb. (0:16 in the video)

    Step 1: Scrub along to the chorus

    First at 0:15

    Rub your hands together on every beat. On "every finger" wiggle your fingers by your face, on "every thumb" pop your thumbs up.

  2. Children rubbing soapy palms together at the sink.
    Palm to palm, a slippy slide. (0:32 in the video)

    Step 2: Water, soap, palm to palm

    First at 0:32

    Hands under the water, one pump of soap, then slide palm against palm until it foams.

  3. Step 3: Backs of hands

    First at 0:36

    Rub the back of one hand with the other palm, then swap sides.

  4. Children scrubbing between their fingers with bubbles floating up.
    Criss-cross fingers, hug each thumb. (0:53 in the video)

    Step 4: Fingers, thumbs and tips

    First at 0:53

    Criss-cross your fingers and wiggle them through, hug each thumb and turn it, then circle your fingertips in the other palm.

  5. Children with foamy hands raised as a big number 20 appears on screen.
    Scrub while you count all the way to twenty. (1:19 in the video)

    Step 5: Count to twenty

    First at 1:18

    Keep scrubbing and count out loud, one number for each slow step of the music, all the way to twenty.

  6. Each child patting their hands dry with their own towel.
    Pat them dry with a towel hug. (1:32 in the video)

    Step 6: Rinse and pat dry

    First at 1:31

    Rinse the bubbles away, then pat your hands dry with your own towel and give it a little towel hug.

Lyrics

The words as sung. The bits in brackets are the echoes to shout back.

Intro

(Splish!)

Chorus

Soapy, soapy, count to twenty!Bubble-bubbles, plenty-plenty!Every finger, every thumb,Scrub away till twenty comes!

Verse 1

Water on and get them wet,One pump of soap, is it foamy yet? (Yes!)Palm to palm, a slippy slide,Backs of hands, on either side.

Chorus

Soapy, soapy, count to twenty!Bubble-bubbles, plenty-plenty!Every finger, every thumb,Scrub away till twenty comes!

Verse 2

Criss-cross fingers, wiggle through,Hug each thumb and spin it too,Fingertips tickle the other palm,Keep on scrubbing, nice and calm!

Break

One, two, three, four, five,Six, seven, eight, nine, ten,Eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen,Sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen... twenty!(Yay!)

Verse 3

Rinse the bubbles, bye-bye foam,Down the drain they hurry home,Pat them dry, a towel hug,Clean hands, snug as a, as a bug!

Chorus

Soapy, soapy, count to twenty!Bubble-bubbles, plenty-plenty!Every finger, every thumb,Scrub away till twenty comes!

Bridge

The little dragon washes too,Scaly claws, the way we do,Before a snack and after play,After potty, every day!

Final Chorus

Soapy, soapy, count to twenty!Bubble-bubbles, plenty-plenty!Every finger, every thumb,Scrub away till twenty comes!

Outro

Soapy, soapy... clean hands!(Clean hands!)(Clean hands!)(Clean hands!)(Clean hands!)

For grown-ups

The song follows public health handwashing steps: wet, soap, scrub every part of both hands for at least 20 seconds, rinse, and dry with a clean towel or air dry.

  • The counting break lasts about 20 seconds; the whole song is longer than you need, which is fine.
  • Check the water is warm, not hot, and keep the soap within reach so children can do the pump themselves.
  • Good moments to wash: before eating, after the toilet or a nappy change, after playing outside or with animals, and after blowing noses.

Sources

Questions parents ask

How long should children wash their hands?

Public health guidance says to scrub for at least 20 seconds. The counting part of Soapy Count to Twenty lasts about that long, one number every two beats.

What are the handwashing steps in the song?

Water on, one pump of soap, palm to palm, backs of hands, criss-cross fingers, thumbs, fingertips, then count to twenty, rinse and pat dry.

What age is it for?

Ages 2 to 6. Toddlers copy the scrubbing and the thumbs; preschoolers can count along to twenty.

Music and vocals made with AI. Lyrics, moves and animation by our team, with AI tools. Words and moves are original to Dragon Kids Land.

More songs like this

Stories to read next

Classic tales on the same theme, retold for reading aloud.

Ages 4-9

The Ant and the Grasshopper

A grasshopper sings all summer from the top of a dry stalk while the ants below him carry grain into a bank, one piece at a time. Then the field goes grey, the frost comes, and he knocks on their door. The ant asks him what he was doing all summer. He tells her the truth.

4 min readAesop
Read it
Ages 4-9

The Frog King

A princess drops her golden ball into a well and promises a frog anything to get it back. She does not mean a word of it. Her father makes her keep every word of it, and the frog is turned back into a prince not by a kiss but by the moment she finally loses her temper.

8 min readThe Brothers Grimm
Read it