1-2-3 Come Do Some Tooth Activities With Me!

I never know when to start posting dental hygiene activities.  I always did our tooth unit the last week of February, simply because there was so much else to cover at the beginning of the month: Groundhog Day, 100 Day, Valentine's Day, (We also visited a post office), as well as  President's Day.  Anyone else's brain out there spinning?

"Everybody in this place, please put a smile on your face!"  is a just-for-fun poster that I designed.  I share it with my kiddos when I launch our dental hygiene activities.  Click on the link to grab the Smile Awhile FREEBIE.

My Y5's enjoyed our "Terrific Teeth" unit; I was always amazed that there was at least one child every year that had never visited a dentist!  Today's blog will feature some of my most popular dental hygiene activities.  Most of them are "print & go" to make it easy for you to toss a few tooth-themed activities into your busy day. 

For those of you who like to start your themed-units with a KWL, click on the link for a dental hygiene one you can do as a whole group, as well as a template your students can do in their writing journals.  Dental Hygiene KWL

Another great way to learn where your students stand on dental hygiene is to do some graphing activities. 

Have they lost a tooth?  Do they have a cavity?  Have they ever been to the dentist?  Would they like to be a dentist? What color is their  toothbrush and how many times do they brush a day? 

These are some of the eight tooth-related graphing questions you can ask your kiddos.   Click on the link to view/download the 8 Dental Hygiene Graphs.

Sending a brushing chart home with your students, is also a fun way for them to let you know that they are practicing good dental hygiene.  I've designed 4 toothbrushing charts that children can choose from. 

They can X off the chart, cover with stickers or color the various icons as they brush.  Click on the link to view/download the 4 Brushing Charts.

Studying dental hygiene provides a wonderful way to build vocabulary.  To help you, I made an alphabetical list of 101 words that are associated with dental hygiene. 

To reinforce these new words, I've included several word searches plus a dental hygiene word journal, where students can record vocabulary as well as definitions.

Click on the link to view/download the Dental Hygiene Word packet, which is great for your Daily 5 word work activities too.

After you've watched some dental hygiene videos and perhaps had a dentist visit your classroom, choose several of these graphic organizers to help reinforce the information that your students learned and practice their writing skills in a visual way.  Click on the link to view/download the dental hygiene graphic organizer packet. 

Another way for students to gain more dental hygiene knowledge, is by doing a Flip For Facts File Folder activity. 

Take your students to the computer lab, so they can look for information on teeth and how to take care of them. 

Students jot down their favorite dental hygiene facts and then write them on the template.  I've included tips and links of how to make citations for information found Online. 

This activity is a great precursor for writing a report, which even a kindergartener can do.  Click on the link to view/download the Dental Hygiene Flip For Facts File Folder packet. 

To incorporate some math skills with your dental hygiene activities, I also designed a Timothy Tooth Counting booklet with a matching center activity. 

Students trace and write the numbers and number words, and then draw the appropriate number of teeth in Timothy's mouth.  Click on the link to view/download Timothy Tooth's Counting Booklet.

The center activity has large tooth posters.  Using dry erase markers, children trace and write the numbers and number words and place that many tooth tiles inside the mouth. 

There's also templates for doing some subtraction activities as well.   Click on the link to view/download the Counting Teeth Center Packet.

Finally, the Dental Hygiene Number Puzzles are another way to integrate math, and help practice counting to ten, counting backwards, and skip counting by 10s to 100. Click on the link to grab these FREEBIES.

Thanks for visiting.  If you're still looking for more tooth-themed FREEBIES to round out your week, click on the link to check out my dental hygiene Pinterest board.

Since it's a wind-chill snow day, I have lots of time to play with my "to do" pile.  Hopefully besides sorting through my desk, I'll get to actually design a few things.  Wishing you an energy-filled day. 

 "I want to get close to you, like shoes with laces, teeth with braces, and words in sentences without spaces." -Unknown

1-2-3 Come Do A Few More Dental Hygiene Activities With Me

I hope these dental hygiene lessons aren't too late for you to use this month.  I'm sure many of you can identify with how fast February flies by.

Since the just-for-fun tooth poster was such a hit yesterday, here's another poster.  Click on the link to grab the Smile Awhile FREEBIE.

As most of you know, I like to cover a variety of standards in all of my subject areas whenever I do a unit.  Dental hygiene is no exception, so I wanted to create a fun writing prompt. 

We had scissor practice daily, as my Y5's really needed to work on their cutting skills, and it was also a way for them to strengthen their finger muscles. 

Writing words and simple sentences on the cut out, also helped, and covered lots of standards at the same time.

With that in mind, I designed the "secret triangle"  where you can also review the circle and triangle shapes, and see if your students have learned some basic facts about dental hygiene. 

Print off the circle template on white construction paper.  Students trim, fold the "flaps" on the dashed lines, and then write at least 3 things they do to help take care of their teeth. 

I've included a triangle, with a rhyming poem, that they can cut and then glue to the back.  I found it in a dozen places Online and no one seems to know who wrote it.  

"Got my toothpaste, got my brush.  I won't hurry; I won't rush.  Making sure my teeth are clean, front and back and in between.  When I brush for quite a while, I will have a happy smile!"

I held the folds shut with a sticker.  Click on the link to view/download the Dental Hygiene Secret Triangle Writing Prompt.

Clarissa, from Pennsylvania, teaches kindergarten, and said she's been enjoying the dental hygiene activites and wondered if I had any centers that had to do with color words, with a dental hygiene theme. 

Didn't, but do now.  Click on the link to view/download the Toothbrush Color Word Center Activity packet.

Run off the master toothbrush on white construction paper; laminate and trim. 

Using dry erase markers, students trace and write the color words in matching colors and then place the appropriate colored handle over the top. 

I have a template for the handles.  If you want to make more than one set, run it off on a variety of colors of construction paper; laminate and trim. 

If you only want to do one or two sets for a center, simply print one copy of the master and then make a template that you can trace and cut.  Click on the link to view/download the Toothbrush Color Matching Game packet.

While I was diddling around making the toothbrush templates, I thought they would also work for some great cutting practice, as well as a review of how students can take care of their teeth, so I designed a "Snip and Flip" Toothbrush writing prompt "craftivity." Click on the link to view/download it.  

For this activity, run off the handles on popular colors of construction paper and give students a choice.  (I have a handle for boys and one for girls, so that they can practice pronouns.)

Run the "bristle boxes" off on white construction paper.  Students cut on the lines to make "bristle tabs" that they can flip. On the other bristle box they write how they take care of their teeth. 

I also included a traceable bristle box for PK children (pictured). Click on the link to view/download the Snip and Flip Toothbrush Writing Prompt Craftivity.

If you're studying time and would like to plug in a tooth-themed telling time activity, click on the link to view/download the It's Time To Take Care Of Your Teeth game packet.

Finally, I had a special request from Diane, in Tennessee, for some tooth-themed alphabet cards for her PK kids. 

As with all of the alphabet card packets, they include an upper and lowercase set, so that you can play all sorts of games with them. 

There are several pages of tips and ideas for what else to use them for too.  Click on the link to view/download the Dental Hygiene Alphabet Cards.

That's it for today.  If you'd like to see all of the dental hygiene FREEBIES, click on the link to zip on over to that section of TeachWithMe. 

Thanks for visiting.  Feel free to PIN away.

"A warm smile is the universal language of kindness." -Ward Beecher