Rockingham County Public Schools

360 pre-kindergarten students in Rockingham County Public Schools will know more about brushing their teeth and dental hygiene in January and February. Sue Dean, RCPS nurse, is facilitating a unit on dental health entitled "Bright Smiles, Bright Futures." Every student is pre-kindergarten at all the elementary schools will be involved.

After a brief lesson, each student gets to "brush his/her teeth" using white tiles. The tiles have had chocolate sauce baked onto them, and each tile has to be brushed clean using a toothbrush and paste. Then each child gets a packet to take home including his/her very own flashing toothbrush, toothpaste and literature about dental hygiene.

Photos shown here were taken in Mrs. Courtney Judd's pre-K class at South River Elementary School on Jan. 20, 2010.

The dental unit was funded in part by an Innovative Idea Grant awarded to Sue Dean by the Rockingham Educational Foundation, Inc.

Please see DN-R article by Jenny Jones below.

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Posted 2010-01-22
Reposted below with permission from the Daily News-Record

Clean Mouth

Schoolchildren Get A Lesson In How To Have A Bright Smile

By Jenny Jones, Daily News-Record

GROTTOES - The students sat on the floor and looked up with wide toothy grins.

Their bright little smiles were the perfect reception for Sue Dean, a preschool nurse with Rockingham County Schools, as she entered the classroom at South River Elementary School on Wednesday.

Dean, who has spoken with county preschoolers about everything from germs to nutrition, was there this time to discuss proper dental care.

"Get out your toothbrushes," Dean told the students as she held her index finger up to her mouth as if it were a toothbrush. Then, to the tune of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," they sang, "Brush, brush, brush your teeth, brush them every day. Every time you brush your teeth, you wash the germs away."

Rule: Brush Twice Daily

After the song, Dean dug into the signature pink bag she carries with her to every lesson. She pulled out a set of cards featuring images of children doing a wide range of activities that involve the teeth - from eating to talking.

"Teeth are important for talking," Dean explained. "If you didn't have teeth in your mouth, it would be hard for me to understand what you're saying."

Then Dean reached into her bag and pulled out a set of giant faux teeth and an oversized toothbrush.

"I'm going to brush my teeth," said Dean, who is presenting her dental lesson to all 20 preschool classes in the school division. "How many times a day should we brush our teeth?"

"Two," the students replied in unison.

Decay In Kids Quite High

After learning about the proper way to brush teeth, the students gathered at a table to practice what they learned. Dean passed out small white bathroom tiles with chocolate baked on them. She also gave the students toothbrushes and water to scrub the "teeth."

"This is gross, yuck," said Paris Jones, 5, as she worked to bring the shine back to her tiles. "I'm working hard to get these clean."

Dean was glad to see the students taking the lesson seriously. She decided to focus on dental hygiene because of the large number of students she encounters in the district with extensive tooth decay. Some, she added, don't even have their own toothbrushes.

"Dental decay in the kids is just huge," said Dean, whose dental lesson is funded by a Rockingham Educational Foundation grant. "It's such a preventable thing. It doesn't have to happen."

In an effort to help students improve their dental health, Dean gave them each a light-up toothbrush, a tube of toothpaste and information to take home to share with their parents.

"You have to brush the front and the back and all the sides," Dean told the students. "We don't want any germs on the teeth."

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Contact Jenny Jones at 574-6286 or jjones@dnronline.com