When You've Got Kids Who Hate Brushing Their Teeth
And some thoughts on vacationing with kids
I’m back from my vacation to Italy and Denmark (will share more about this in an upcoming post) and I feel so rested and rejuvenated. I know a lot of people say a vacation is just “parenting in a different location” and while that’s not technically wrong, I do think a mindset shift needs to happen. Pre-kids a vacation used to be about taking a break from your professional and personal responsibilities. Post-kids that definition still holds! I think once you’re a parent, you’re always a parent (even if your kids are all grown). So take the vacation. Your vacations post-kids will look different and I guarantee some days will be hard. But some days at home are really hard too. At least relieve yourself from your household chores and enjoy parenting in new scenery. I promise you’ll make lots of great memories—or at the very least memories that you can laugh about later!
As a personal update to my previous post on helping prepare kids for flights, my own did okay. Not great, not terrible. She loves people. Loves to meet and interact with people and offer them her toys, food, and (unused) barf bag. So, theoretically, a cylindrical steel tube filled with people who are hostage to her attention is her idea of fun. It is not, understandably, what everyone else on the plane had in mind when they boarded. So it was difficult to limit her interactions and generally contain her. We made it through and I would do it again in a heartbeat. TAKE THE VACATION.
Today’s post is all about brushing your teeth. Now, to be honest, I feel like some of these reads apply to adults as well. Dental hygiene is one of those things that makes people of all ages grimace (sorry, dentists). At this point in my life, I feel pretty good about my dental hygiene—in my head, I’ve gamified it so it’s me versus the dentist. Every time I go in for an appointment, my goal is to walk out with no fillings needed. These days, I usually win (except for that blasted summer in 2020 when I had nothing better to do than make homemade desserts) but it’s these little things that make the upkeep and appointments bearable. Hopefully, these reads will get kids interested and, dare I say, even excited about their dental hygiene!
GIVEAWAY WINNER: Garth G.!
For kids who are learning to brush…
Sesame Street: Ready, Set, Brush! A Pop-Up Book
Written by Matt Mitter | Illustrated by Tom Brannon
Recommended Ages: 1-3 years
This book is a big hit for a good reason: you’ve got the beloved Sesame Street cast in a fun, interactive pop-up book. What’s not to love? Each page covers a step in the teeth-brushing process and gets kids involved as well. For example, I love how kids can learn the right amount of toothpaste to use by spinning the wheel until just the right amount of toothpaste is on the toothbrush. Toddlers and babies will have a blast “playing” with this book. The text explains each step in rhyme which has a nice rhythm that will catch a tiny reader’s interest. Between the rhyme and all the interactive tabs, this is a PERFECT starter book to help teach very young kids about how to brush their teeth.
Links to buy: Bookshop.org*
Brush, Brush, Brush!
Illustrated by Alicia Padron
Recommended Ages: 1-3 years
If your kid loves music, then this board book might be a hit with them. Set to the tune of ‘Do Your Ears Hang Low,’ the text in the book is meant to be sung to help get kids excited to learn how to brush their teeth. The lyrics are simple, catchy, and easy to understand. The book explains how to brush and how often. The illustrations are incredibly cute pencil drawings of a diverse set of kids brushing their teeth.
Links to buy: Bookshop.org*
Help The Lion Brush His Teeth!
Written by Sophie Schoenwald | Illustrated by Gunther Jakobs
Recommended Ages: 2-4 years
Similar to Sesame Street: Ready, Set, Brush! A Pop-Up Book, this adorable book gets kids involved! Originally published in German, this book shares the challenges Mr. Lion faces with his mangy teeth. Because of his teeth, Mr. Lion becomes antisocial so his jungle friends decide to help him improve his dental hygiene. Each page outlines a step and encourages the reader to participate: helping “squeeze” out toothpaste (by closing the book a few times), scrubbing Mr. Lion’s teeth, etc. The illustrations are charmingly sketched and painted; Mr. Lion especially is so expressive, you can’t help but be sympathetic to his plight. One of the things I love best about this book is that not only does it instruct children on how to keep their teeth clean but it also highlights the power of friendship as everyone works together to help Mr. Lion.
Links to buy: Bookshop.org*
For kids who need some motivation…
Alan’s Big, Scary Teeth
Written and Illustrated by Jarvis
Recommended Ages: 2-5 years
This gorgeously illustrated board book features Alan, an alligator who enjoys scaring the other animals in the jungle. Taking great joy from his antics, Alan has a big secret: he has false teeth! When jungle animals learn about this they steal away his false teeth; Alan is embarrassed and sad because he’s essentially been laid off from his “job.” The animals decide to give him back his teeth on the condition that he uses his teeth for good. The pencil and paint drawings are absolutely marvelous and a treat for the eyes. While this book doesn’t specifically discuss dental hygiene, it does raise a few questions worth discussing with kids: What do you need your teeth for? What would it feel like to not have teeth? These questions can help establish the bigger picture of why caring for your teeth is so important.
Links to buy: Bookshop.org*
All The Silly Stuff In My Teeth
Written by Mike Henson | Illustrated by Barbara Bakos
Recommended Ages: 3-6 years
This rhyming gem of a book is perfect for kids who love getting lost in imaginary worlds. A young kid is brushing their teeth at bedtime and imagining all the nonsensical, silly things stuck in their teeth that need to be brushed out before going to bed. With one scrub, out comes a flock of birds! With another, there goes a big, brass band! The joyful, rhyming text gently and subtly reminds kids why they don’t want nonsense in their teeth. The bright, soft artwork is as exuberant as the text and evokes a sense of playfulness around the task of teeth cleaning. A fun question to ask kids before they clean their teeth is what sort of nonsense do they think they’ll find stuck in their teeth?
Links to buy: Bookshop.org*
Cavities vs Toothpaste
Written by Didi Dragon | Illustrated by Hannah Robinett
Recommended Ages: 5-9 years
This adorable read is sure to bring a smile to the faces of kids and adults. It starts by explaining what cavities are and what causes them (our antagonists, the bad bacteria). From there we learn how bacteria ruin our teeth and what we can do to stop that from happening. This sounds like a dry and boring lecture in picture book format. I promise you, it is not. The text does such an amazing job of educating without lecturing and you can’t help but fall in love with the creativity of explaining different aspects of cleaning. For example,
The bacteria rush to the safe zones. “Get between the teeth, on the back of the molars, and on the tongue. Move it, move it, move it!!! Hopefully, this will only take seconds, so hang in there. We’re going under in 3-2-1!”
The illustrations are bright and colorful and a treasure trove of little cartoon skits and exquisite details your kids will find hilarious. For any kids who love stories about fighting evil, kicking bacteria butt, and cleaning up “sugapoo,” this will be a huge hit. This book is a MUST for learning about why we need to keep our teeth clean in a fun, engaging way.
Links to buy: Bookshop.org*
Chirpy Charlie’s Teeth
Written by Marta Zafrilla | Illustrated by Sonja Wimmer
Recommended Ages: 6-8 years
This book is great for kids who love animals. In this one, Charlie, a pet bird, watches his human friend, Julie, brush her teeth every night to stave off the dreaded fillings. Concerned that he might get these horrible fillings, Charlie goes on a mission to figure out how to brush his teeth. He asks other animals how they clean their teeth and attempts to do the same to disastrous results. Ultimately, Julie helps him figure out how to keep clean. What I love best about this book is it reinforces to kids that everyone needs to clean their teeth! Illustrated by the award-winning Sonja Wimmer, the artwork is a gorgeous blend of muted and saturated colors. The book was originally published in Spanish and is made of water and tear-resistant paper which makes it perfect for kids who want to bring it into the bathroom.
Links to buy: Bookshop.org* (English) | Bookshop.org* (Spanish)
Do you or have you had a kid who hated brushing their teeth? How did you encourage them to develop the habit? Hit the button below and tell us about it!
*Thank you for using (at no additional cost to you) the affiliate links in this post! :-)
Sri, I love your reflections- this phrase was so on point and hilarious. Thanks for sharing and for putting a smile on my face: She loves people. Loves to meet and interact with people and offer them her toys, food, and (unused) barf bag. So, theoretically, a cylindrical steel tube filled with people who are hostage to her attention is her idea of fun.