Book List

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27

Supplies and Preparation

The only supplies you will need are the books listed below.

Instructions

Suggested Books:

Infant and Toddlers

Smile, Roberta Grobel, 1995
My Teeth, Milestones Project, 2007
Eating the Rainbow (Babies Everywhere), Star Bright Books, 2009
Eating the Alphabet, Lois Ehlert, 1995

Preschool

Ready, Set, Brush: A Pop-Up Book, Sesame Street, Che Rudko, 2008
Chomp and Chew, to a Healthy You!, Molly Carroll, 2011
Max Goes to the Dentist, Adria F. Klein, 2006
The Going to Bed Book, Sandra Boynton, 1995
Dinosaur vs. Bedtime, Bob Shea, 2008
All About Teeth, Mari Schuh, 2006
At the Dentist, Mari Schuh 2007
Going Greenie: Are You Eating Something Red?, Ryan Sias, 2010
Your Teeth, Helen Frost, 1995
Brushing Well, Helen Frost, 2004
Dentist, Jacqueline Laks Gorman, 2002
My Tooth Is About to Fall Out, Grace Maccarone, 1995
Snacks for Healthy Teeth, Mari Schuh, 2008
Potter the Otter, a Tale About Water, Shalini Singh, 2011
Buddy’s Teeth, Andrea Posner-Sanchez, 2012
Brush Your Teeth Please, Leslie McGuire, 1993
Clarabella’s Teeth, An Vrombaut, 200

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Literacy and Library

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Activity Index

Goal

Baby Teeth are Important

Big Bites: Things You Should Know

Baby teeth are important – they help us smile, eat, talk, and hold space for adult teeth.
Baby teeth, also called primary teeth, will start to come in at about 6 months of age and continue to until about age two and a half.
Taking care of children’s baby teeth helps to establish good oral health habits and increases the chances of having a healthy mouth later in life.

Brush Floss Swish

Big Bites: Things You Should Know

Everyone should brush their teeth for two minutes, two times a day (after breakfast and before bed).
Use a smear of fluoridated toothpaste starting with tooth eruption to age 3; after that, use a pea size.
Brush all sides of each tooth using a small amount of fluoridated toothpaste. Do not rinse your mouth out when you finish brushing.
Floss at least once a day to remove food and germs stuck between teeth. Begin flossing a child’s teeth when the teeth touch.
When brushing is not possible, after eating rinse your mouth with water. Swish the water around your mouth and then swallow it. Children can usually swish and swallow at about age 3.
An adult should assist a child with brushing until they can tie a shoe lace, between 6 to 8 years old.

Water for Thirst

Big Bites: Things You Should Know

Water is the best drink to keep your teeth and body healthy.
Water may contain fluoride, a natural mineral that helps prevent cavities.
Tooth healthy foods and drinks are low in sugar and high in fiber and nutrients, such as fruits, vegetables, cheeses, meat and beans, and whole grain breads and pastas.
Tooth unhealthy foods and drinks are starchy and high in sugar, such as crackers, dried fruit, chips, cookies, as well as juice and soda pop.
Eating tooth unhealthy foods creates an acid that attacks teeth.
Continual snacking on tooth unhealthy foods or drinking juice or soda causes repeated acid attacks. Repeated acid attacks cause cavities.
It is important to have meals and snacks at regularly scheduled times. This reduces the number of acid attacks on teeth. .

Tooth Healthy Foods

Big Bites: Things You Should Know

The combination of germs and carbohydrates (sugar and starches) creates an acid that attacks teeth.
Cavity causing germs can be passed from a mother or caregiver to a baby through kissing, sharing utensils, or by putting baby’s pacifier in mom’s mouth.
Continual snacking on sugary or starchy foods or drinking juice or soda causes repeated acid attacks. Repeated acid attacks cause cavities.
Cavities are almost entirely preventable and can be avoided by limiting continual snacking, drinking water instead of juice/soda, by brushing after eat and by making sure mom doesn’t have active tooth decay.
White or brown spots on teeth can be early signs of a cavity and a black spot is probably a cavity.
Cavities must be treated by a dentist.
Untreated cavities can lead to a serious infection.

Going to the Dentist

Big Bites: Things You Should Know

A dentist or medical provider checks teeth and applies fluoride varnish, takes x-rays, fixes cavities etc.
Everyone should have regular dental checkups; follow your program’s requirements for dental screenings, referrals, and checkup schedules
The dentist or a medical provider should check all children’s mouths by a child’s first tooth or first birthday
Young children may get fluoride varnish to strengthen teeth and help prevent cavities
Children and their parents may be nervous or fearful about going to the dentist
Families may need encouragement, support and information about why dental visits are necessary and important

CFK Throughout the Day

Throughout the Classroom

Decorate a bulletin board with pictures of dental tools children may see at a dentist office. Label them.
Hang a chart in the classroom called “I had a dental check-up.” Create a thermometer visual that you color in as children get their dental check-up.
Set up a pretend dental office for dramatic play.

At Meals and Snacks

Ask: Who’s been to the dentist? What do you remember about the visit?

While Brushing Teeth

Be a role model. Brush your teeth with the children to show you take care of your teeth too.
Talk about making tiny, tickly circles with a toothbrush to clean the food and germs away.
Give each child an “I brushed my teeth today” sticker to wear home Tell children the dentist will be so proud of them when he sees how well they have been brushing.
Have children pretend their brushes are like the special spinning toothbrush the dentist uses and make a humming noise while they brush.

During Transitions

When children are getting ready to go home, put a sticker on each child that says, “Today I learned about visiting the dentist!”