10 Tips for Teaching Kids to Brush

If you feel you are busy, then you should just try being a kid. Apart from the school, family time and daily activities, the children are also trying to cope up with the different things that they are getting to know every day as well as learning to take care of themselves as well as others.

One of the essential lifestyle habits that every kid must learn happens to be how to brush his or her teeth and keep them clean. As a parent, you may have already witnessed your kid’s brushing techniques. The kids, in the initial state, just take a gobble of paste and go for just ten seconds of brushing. The only outcome of this is a whole lot of mess.

But in order to remove the plaque and clean the mouth in a proper way they must devote at least a couple of minutes twice a day and clean the mouth thoroughly following certain techniques. That is why here are some of the tips as suggested by the best dentist in Forest Ave Queens that can help making brushing a breeze for your kids so that they can get rid of the cavity-forming bacteria, plaque and other harmful ingredients in the mouth. Just read on.

  • Allow the Kids to Brush by Themselves – Even when they are very young, as a parent you should and may have already known the importance of keeping the kids’ mouth spick and span. If everything for your kid is a power-struggle then you should let them brush their teeth for some time and then you can finish the job for them later.

  • Make Toothbrushing Fun – Kids may not realize the right technique of brushing as they have not seen it before. If you let them imitate the techniques on the puppet, figurine or a doll especially on the ones that have strong hard teeth after you have showed them how proper brushing is to be done, it can turn out to be quite helpful for them. This way they will slowly understand the technique and brush in the right way.

  • Give Rise to a Routine and Stick to It – During times when you are out of your schedule like holidays or after a long day, you may be tempted to let the kid skip their brushing. But you should not let that happen. The more the brushing becomes familiar and turns into a second nature the easier it becomes to make you kid brush twice a day for a couple of minutes every day.

  • As the Kids Brush Theirs You Should Brush Your Teeth– You should start brushing your teeth at the time when the kids brush theirs as they love to imitate. Allow them to hold their own toothbrush and ask them to do exactly what you do. Then you can also ask them to brush your teeth first if you need to brush theirs for a thorough cleaning.

  • Good Brushing Behavior is to be Rewarded – Think about what motivates your kids first. You should make a reward chart for the proper brushing techniques. If your kid loves to collect stickers, then you should let them add a sticker every time they brush properly. If they love to read them make them pick out a bedtime story whenever they brush correctly. It just like seeing a bright smile and encouraging your kids with high fives as an acknowledgement to their good work.

  • Educate the Kids on What Happens if the Teeth Are Left Unbrushed – Explain the kids that the teeth can get yellowish and dirtier when they are not cleaned on a regular basis. The idea of the yellow teeth is not very much liked by most kids and that can be the driving force for them to take brushing seriously. You can also show them how the yellowing of the teeth can destroy ones looks completely. But make it a point not to make it scary for them to visit the dentist.

  • Use Less Toothpaste – More than half of the parents offer chunks of toothpaste to their kids for brushing. But it is not worth it. For a comprehensive cleanup, just a pea-sized amount of toothpaste is enough. So, don’t overuse the toothpaste as it wont cleanup faster or better.

  • Make the Brushing a Lot of Fun – At the time of brushing, you can let the kids know that they can have lots of fun by making faces and dancing around while brushing. Some kids make animal noises and growl by baring their teeth. Ensure that brushing is always reckoned as a fun activity in their mind so that they get excited to brush their teeth every day.

  • Let the Kids Pick Up Their Brush – You should let the kids pick up their own toothbrush and toothpaste. While fluoride toothpaste is recommended by the best dentist in Greenpoint you can spice the traditional toothpaste up by choosing from a variety of colors and flavors of fluoride toothpaste. You can also take the kid for shopping for a funky tooth brush that they will love and that can make brushing a fun and playful activity for them.

  • Examine the Kids’ Teeth and Let Them Know What to Find – To make the kids understand the significance of brushing you can ask the kids open their mouth for a comprehensive observation both before and after cleaning. You may point out the things that you can see in their mouth prior to brushing and then after brushing you can declare it all cleaned which will inspire them to brush more efficiently.

The above are some of the tips that will encourage and help kids to brush in an appropriate manner so that they can flaunt a beautiful and healthy smile for years toc come.

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