Lesson plans geared for children and designed by dental professionals can assist both parents and teachers in educating children about cavities. The Crest and Oral-B Dental Education Program provides fun student kits and teacher guides to educate children about cavities and dental hygiene. The student kit contains a toothbrush, toothpaste, plaque discoloring tablets and a booklet. The tablets reveal plaque build up on teeth, and the booklet shows how plaque can lead to cavities. The teacher guide contains an instructional book, an 8-minute animated video, a 10-minute CD and a bilingual poster.
Books with colorful illustrations of animals and smiling children can be excellent teaching aids when it comes to informing kids about the causes and effects of cavities. “Brush Your Teeth Please” by Leslie McGuire is a fun 3-D educational pop-up book that brings animals to life, and illustrates the importance of brushing your teeth and how cavities form. It is for children aged two and up, and concludes with an example of a positive outcome from brushing regularly: bright smiles with zero cavities. For older children who want a better scientific grounding, “Cavities and Toothaches” by Elaine Landau is geared for children aged seven and up. It gives a scientific overview of teeth, their parts and names, tooth bacteria, and the causes and effects of cavities.
In-home or classroom experiments are great ways to get kids involved when it comes to learning about the causes and effects of cavities. Crest showcases an experiment called “A Fun Eggspiriment” that involves leaving an egg in a bowl of vinegar over a five- to six-day period. The egg represents a tooth, and vinegar simulates the acids that cause plaque and bacteria. The egg's shell becomes weakened by the vinegar, thus illustrating what happens to teeth if they aren’t brushed regularly. The portion of the egg exposed to the vinegar turns soft, while the unexposed part stays hard. Children will learn that brushing is a great way to keep teeth strong while fighting cavities.
Educational games about tooth care are great ways of educating children about cavities. These can be board games or online games. The online “Plaque Attack” game allows children to aim the mouse at plaque monsters that are busy giving a set of teeth cavities. By brushing quickly kids can eliminate plaque, but if they are too slow cavities will form. The game “Pearly Whites” is a giant mouth in which children navigate around the teeth and answer trivia questions about oral health care. You can make your own game for toddlers by creating a chart and awarding a star every time your little one brushes. When they have enough stars ask them trivia questions about the causes and effects of cavities, and award prizes for correct answers.