How to Train Oral Health in Kids
Mouth care is an important part of daily hygiene in both adults and kids. Training your kid about dental hygiene in their early years gets them accustomed to good mouth care habits like brushing their teeth regularly.

However, lessons training oral health in kids are only effective if you teach the right thing at the right time. For instance, while your five-year daughter can’t understand the complexity of their dental formula, she’ll surely benefit from a practical “how to brush your teeth” session.

This article will seek to find ways in which children between the ages of five to seven can be taught to keep their teeth healthy. We will also discuss the different training strategies to find the most successful methods to coach your kids.


Oral Health in Kids: Why You Need to Slow Down Dental Care Training
As hinted above, you must go about this process carefully. Below are some important reasons why.

  • Your kid’s mind isn’t developed enough to understand the true importance of mouth care. It’s your job to teach them the basics before proceeding to technical matters.
  • Kids have short attention spans. Your 6-year son can benefit more from a short and engaging dental care session than an hour of lecturing.
  • Kids learn through fun. A well-thought-out (and captivating) training session involving props, demonstrations, and relevant poems/songs can help you send the message much faster.

With all the above considerations in mind, you can plan an effective at-home training session for your kids.
The Best Way(s) to Teach Oral Health in Kids
Being at a tender age, it’s better to use a mild lecture and some role-playing to educate the children on the importance of having healthy teeth.

A mild lecture is the best way to begin this session because children 5-7 are more likely to listen to others and question whatever knowledge they have to improve themselves. Role-play is also ideal for this campaign because children ages 5-7 love to do things and love the self-esteem that comes from engaging in an activity, not just observing.

Each activity that a child engages in at this age can cause a change in their cognitive thinking and alter how they organize knowledge.

If possible, engage them in group training with friends or at school. During this session, train kid(s) the correct way to brush their teeth and the foods to avoid when going to sleep using visual aids. For hygiene purposes, emphasize the importance of rinsing the toothbrush and keeping it clean after each session.

Next, ask some of the kids from the group to demonstrate how to brush their teeth. After observing the results, show them how to brush do it properly, and ask them to repeat the process.

Lastly, engage them in a Q&A session to test their understanding of the class.
Why the above teaching strategies?
Learning such lifelong lessons is important for children at this stage. Adult teaching encourages child development because grownup-led sessions are more focused and direct.

By giving a short lecture, you help the children concentrate on the lesson and find a set of objectives they could use from the class. This approach is useful in imparting basic skills because most kids (5-7 years) don’t know how to brush their teeth or clean their toothbrushes after the session.

Furthermore, when teaching oral health in kids, begin from scratch to iron out any misinformation. Remember, most kids only learn how to brush by copying their siblings.

During training, use role-play to engage the kids in the activity. Demonstrations ensure everyone understands the lesson correctly. It also encourages learning because it gives visual aid.

Through role-play, you gain the kids’ cooperation, and most importantly, receive helpful feedback.
How these teaching strategies help you achieve your objectives
During the ages of 5-7 cognitive development is rapid because of cerebral development. A school environment offers an ideal place to share info, especially short straight-to-the-point information.

For that reason, it’s helpful to engage kids in pre-school activities encouraging cognitive development.

Studies also show that group training is an excellent way to improve child development. By allowing kids to demonstrate how to brush their teeth, you engage their psychomotor skills. Children are willing and capable of using equipment like a toothbrush. Your role is to show them how to do so with accuracy.

Teaching kids the proper way to brush their teeth and congratulating them when they do it right goes a long way in promoting their cognitive and psychomotor skills.
Training oral Health in Kids: What are some Important Resources
To organize a successful training session, it’s important to use the right training tools. These tools simplify your work because they are built with a child’s learning curve in mind.

In essence, they help reinforce your message and offer myriad other benefits including:

  • Make training sessions fun
  • They increase retention and memorability in kids
  • Simplifies training sessions
  • Breaks down the message to match a child’s understanding

Below are some “how to brush your teeth” resources to teach young ones about oral health.
1.   Training videos
videos are an excellent way to demonstrate to kids the mouth care process. There are plenty of reliable videos from reputable organizations like the American Dental Association. They help you teach everything about mouth care from brushing to flossing and teeth-friendly foods.
2.   Books
Books never grow old. This approach is useful because it uses storytelling to pass the message. For example, The Tooth Book by Dr. Seuss is one of the most common dental health books to introduce your young one to mouth care. There are many other guides including:

Remember, these are books meant to train kids, there are plenty of others designed for parents/guardians and educators.
3.   Child-friendly toothbrush toothpaste
Unlike adults, kids gain inspiration from some of the smallest things. For instance, using a colorful and movie/animation character-themed brush can inspire kids to prioritize healthcare. Other factors like the brush size and bristle softness also determine whether a kid actually uses their toothbrush or not.

Lastly, you want to consider child-themed toothpaste as your young one(s) may find regular toothpaste too minty.
4.   Brushing songs
Songs carry messages that help kids memorize the most important mouth care processes. Because kids memorize simple songs and love group singing, you can train a few brushing songs to help send important messages.

There are plenty of brushing songs to choose from out there. The most creative trainers even compose their own songs. However, if you choose this approach, make the song short, fun and simple without compromising on the message.
5.   Mouth care posters
Sticking posters demonstrating oral health in kids is another excellent way to remind your kids of the most essential dental care lessons. These tools are effective both in school and at-home settings because children 5-7 are ardent readers. When choosing posters, double-check the message to determine its effectiveness in sending the right message.
6.   “How to brush your teeth” poems
Mouth care poems discussing how to brush and floss your teeth can help children grasp and master the basics. Kids love memorizing and reciting poems both solo and in groups. If you choose this approach, search for pre-made brushing songs online or compose your own poems.
How to Gauge Success After Training Oral Health in Kids
After dedicating plenty of time to this class, it’s important to gauge the kids’ understanding of the mouth care class. Of course, at the end of the exercise you’d like the kid to achieve something; to promote good health habits by teaching kids the correct way to brush and maintain happy, healthy teeth.

So what are the indicators of success? This training session is a success if the kid proves their understanding of the lesson by giving an accurate demonstration of how to brush one’s teeth.

Also, kids should provide more accurate answers to the questions you ask during the interactive Q&A held at the end of the exercise.
Last Words on Training Oral Health in Kids
In conclusion, it’s important to promote healthy habits among kids. If you do not begin discussing dental hygiene early in childhood, they’ll probably struggle to adopt this culture later in life.

Besides healthy teeth, maintaining oral hygiene promotes self-esteem in children. It is therefore important to begin these lessons as soon as a child turns 5.

Lastly, remember to be patient when teaching these skills because a kid’s learning curve is different from an adult’s. Also, take advantage of the discussed training resource to increase the effectiveness of your sessions.