The summer holidays are approaching and school is almost out! While the kids think that this means 6 whole weeks of no learning, playing outdoors and ice creams every day, we think the summer holidays are the perfect opportunity to teach kids about healthy living and how to look after their teeth.
We have put 4 activities that you can do with your kids to help them understand and learn about teeth in a fun way:
1. Clean the plaque activity
Kids love visual activities and often this is the best way for them to learn and have fun. Cut out some teeth and stick them onto a piece of card. Cover this with clear contact paper and colour in ‘plaque spots’ with a marker. Get the kids to clean the plaque off the teeth for them to understand why we have to brush our teeth.
2. Play dough teeth
Play-dough is always popular with the kids, so why not make it entertaining and educational by helping them construct a mouth. Use red dough for the gum and white for the teeth and help them shape into incisors, canines and molars.
Whilst placing them in the correct places, you can teach your child about the different types of teeth and what they’re used for.
3. Bad food vs. good food
Cut out 2 teeth and draw a smiley face on one tooth and a sad face on the other. Then, cut out pictures of food (e.g. cheese, sweets, fizzy drinks) from magazine and ask your child to sort them out into what is good for his teeth, then stick them on the smiley faced tooth and what is bad for his teeth.
4. Read books
Bedtime stories are a great way to educate kids about how to look after their teeth, or trips to the dentist. Some books we recommend are: ‘SpongeBob: Behold, No Cavities’, ‘The Berenstain Bears Visit the Dentist’ and ‘Just Going to the Dentist’.
