An incredible collection of dental health crafts and activities for preschoolers and older kids. It includes fun craft ideas, interactive sorting games, experiments, printables and learning tools.
Teach Dental Health Through Crafts and Activities
Understanding dental hygiene and practicing good oral health habits from an early age is vital. Sadly, oral health education for children is often overlooked. A great way to address this issue?
Try integrating fun and educational crafts and activities dedicated to dental health into your child’s schedule or curriculum.
Make the most of opportunities like Dental Health Month in February to engage the little ones in these activities.
Crafts and hands-on activities are effective tools for helping children grasp complex concepts as they add a visual, tactile aspect to learning.
In the case of dental hygiene, crafts and activities can demonstrate the correct brushing techniques, the importance of brushing twice a day, and the role a balanced diet plays in maintaining one’s oral health.
Let’s consider an example: a craft activity involving the anatomy of the mouth can help children visually understand how each tooth has its specific function.
So, bring out the paper, colored pencils and glue, and let’s dive into creating fun, educational dental health crafts and activities.
Ultimately, these crafts are not just about having fun.
They serve as an enjoyable platform to reinforce the importance of dental health to the young learners.
Interactive Preschool Dental Health Activities
Kids’ developing understanding of dental health can greatly benefit from interactive crafting activities.
One such engaging project is the ‘Happy Tooth, Sad Tooth’ sorting game.
This creative and educational task serves as a helpful tool in teaching kids the importance of selecting the right foods for their oral health.
It is a great hands-on method for kids to learn about food choices and understand their direct impact on oral hygiene.
The fun, crafty element of the activity also ensures that these critical lessons stay ingrained in their minds.
Remember to have a conversation with the kids about their choices to reinforce the learning experience.
So, encourage the young ones to engage in such interactive craft activities.
It’s a fun way to raise awareness about oral hygiene and the role diet plays in keeping teeth healthy.
You’ll be surprised how such craft exercises can enhance their comprehension of good dental practices at such young ages.
Happy tooth sad tooth sorting activity – A fun sorting game to help kids decide which food options are healthy and make a tooth happy and which are unhealthy.
Healthy teeth kids activity – Download the free printable, let the kids color the different food options and the two teeth. Once they are done coloring, they can split the food into two categories: food that makes the tooth happy and food that makes the tooth sad.
Teeth Crafts for Preschoolers
Creating fun and educational crafts is one of the most effective ways to impart knowledge to kids.
We can utilize it as a hands-on learning tool to teach them about dental hygiene.
Crafts can be a powerful educational tool. They allow children to learn while indulging in their creative side.
Tooth fairy craft – The loss of the first tooth is a significant event in a kid’s life. Why not celebrate this milestone with a simple and fun tooth fairy craft?
This activity is not only a great way for kids to express their creativity, but it also serves as a tangible reminder of this significant and exciting change in their personal development.
You can even write a congratulatory message on the tooth, such as “Congratulations on losing your first tooth!” or “Welcome to the Tooth Fairy Club!”.
This craft gives you a unique and personal way to celebrate this important dental milestone with your child.
It also creates a fun memory and keepsake to look back on.
Tooth craft – Help kids learn how to properly brush their teeth with a fun tooth craft.
Teeth Activities for Preschoolers
The next two examples are engaging hands-on activities that doubles as visual educational tools.
The projects actively involve kids in creating their version of the human mouth anatomy, which they can then use to learn the names of different teeth.
Not only do these activities provide a fun and tactile way for kids to learn about dental anatomy, but they are also an excellent tool for teaching proper oral hygiene practices.
Teeth mouth anatomy learning tool – Made with cardboard and white rocks for teeth, this activity helps kids name their teeth, and also how to properly brush and floss.
Color and label tooth printable – With this free printable, kid can learn about the parts of a tooth and how their teeth have nerves and blood vessels.
Teeth Brushing Fun Activities
Maintaining dental hygiene can be quite a chore for children.
But, turn it into a fun activity, and you’ll find them enthusiastic.
Our next activities are just such enjoyable exercises that also imparts knowledge about oral hygiene.
While they might seem like simple, amusing activities, they essentially teach your child the importance of thorough brushing, all the while targeting those corners where food particles are usually trapped.
These fun, hands-on teaching methods can be a valuable practical lesson in maintaining good oral hygiene.
Monster teeth brushing – Make a paper monster face with its mouth wide open and slide it inside a plastic bag. Use a black marker to draw on the bag left over food between the teeth and hand your kid a brush to brush the monster’s teeth.
Tooth brushing activity for preschoolers – Download the free tooth template, laminate and write on it with dry erase markers. Hand preschoolers an old toothbrush and invite them to have fun scrubbing away the writing.
Preschool tooth brushing activity – Same idea as before, but if you don’t have a laminator, you can slid the paper with the tooth drawing into a page protector.
Brushing practice with Duplo blocks – If you are looking for a sensory brushing practice activity for your preschoolers, prepare a small tub of warm, soapy water and place a couple of Duplo blocks in the water. Have the kids brush them.
Egg carton toothbrush painting – Set up a toothbrush egg carton activity where young kids can use real toothpaste to color the tooth. This is a low pressure opportunity to introduce them to new toothpaste smells and tastes.
Dental health smile activity – While kids are having using slime to brush the egg carton teeth, you can talk with them about how to take care of teeth, dental hygiene and how to properly brush the teethe every morning and night, before going to bed.
Tooth Experiments for Preschoolers
Experiments are a fun way to make learning about dental health engaging.
Through such activities, children can better understand the importance of dental hygiene and associate oral health with fun and creativity.
What happens when you don’t brush your teeth? – A fun STEM experiment involving the observation over several days of hard boiled eggs submerged into dark soda and an opportunity to talk about enamel, germs, bacteria and cavities. You can pair this activity with the book “Dragon’s Breath”.
Tooth decay eggshell experiment – If your kids resist brushing their teeth, you may want to try this experiment. Submerge a hard-boiled egg in a jar or cup and fill it up with different liquids, from lemon juice, vinegar to coffee and soda. Leave the jars for a few days and notice what happens to the eggshells.
Tooth Printables
Take advantage of these awesome pintables created by creative moms, and use them at home or in the classroom.
Healthy smile game – A free printable to teach kids in a fun way about good oral health habits.
Dentist office dramatic play – Encourage your preschooler and kindergartner to engage in dentist dramatic play to get more comfortable with what they should expect when going to the dentist office.
Teeth Study Unit – A valuable resource for teachers to use at daycare or preschool, that includes a variety of lessons: social studies, language arts, science, health, and even math!