Getting your kids to brush their teeth is difficult, but having fun is.
Teeth games for kids help parents avoid the brushing battles before bedtime and after they get up. Introducing dental-driven activities can also set up good oral habits in toddlers and help older children understand why it is important to look after their teeth.
Here are a few ideas on injecting some fun and interest in dental care for the youngest members of your family.
Add Music to the Moment
Toddlers can not pay attention for long, but according to the Indian Dental Association, brushing their teeth properly should only take two to three minutes and should be supervised by parents. That is the perfect amount of time to play their favourite pop song or one you composed yourself.
When they know they hear a fun song when they brush their teeth, kids will be more motivated to do it. You could sing a favourite nursery rhyme, too, and even change the lyrics to make it about brushing teeth. For example, “Baa, baa dirty teeth, I will make you clean – up, down, up, down, back and forth three times ’round.”
Eggs-Periments
Teeth games for kids can include simple experiments to help them learn about how different foods affect their teeth. Eggshells, according to the British Dental Health Foundation, are full of calcium also found in teeth, and react to food acids and fluoride similarly.
Place hard-boil eggs in boiling water for 10 minutes, then let them cool before putting them in different liquids to see how they decay.
Put one egg in soda and one egg in water for eight to 13 hours. Rinse both eggs in clean water and press the shells with your fingertips. The egg exposed to soda will feel soft.
Try the same experiment with different liquids, such as milk, vinegar and orange juice, and compare the results.
Paint thick toothpaste stripes on an egg and leave it for four days. Wash off the toothpaste and soak the egg in soda overnight. The areas that were covered in toothpaste should feel harder than the unprotected areas.
Board Games
A pair of dice, some counters, a large sheet of paper and a pencil are all that is needed to create a simple board game about dental care.
Create a series of question cards that quiz kids on teeth, dentists, oral health and other related subjects.
Have the kids roll the dice, move to the appropriate square, and then answer a question. Each time they get one right, they get to roll again. The goal is to move from one side of the board to the other, be the first to land, and answer the question on the final square. Your board could even be in the shape of a mouth, and each square is a tooth. Once you have played through a few times and exhausted all the questions, let the kids create more questions by looking up facts online or at the local library.
Play these games as they are, or adapt them to suit your own family.
When it is time for your kids to take responsibility for their dental health, they will have fond memories of fun times with mim and dad learning about looking after their teeth.
