Site Name: Mouth Healthy Kids: American Dental Association – “Smile Smart Dental Health Curriculum”

• Reason for Choosing This Site:
  • The above website was found under a reputable site associated with the American Dental Association (ADA). Within the site there are several tabs with resources for various audiences such as children, parents and pre-teens. This particular tab within the site is directed specifically to teachers. The title of this site is the Smile Smart Dental Health Curriculum.
  • From my research, I found that this ADA website was the most effective in informing teachers about dental health. Even more than this, the website provides extensive resources to teachers, encouraging them to bring Dental Health Education into the classroom. Teachers are provided with two or three lesson plans for every age range. For pre-K to 2nd grade alone there are 6 lesson plans that allow teachers to guide their students into healthy dental habits at a young age. What makes this site’s lesson plans so worthwhile is the way they connect dental health to other elements of healthy living such as proper diet, and hygiene. The lessons are comprehensive in that they provide so much more than a simple list of responsibilities for how to take care of your teeth – they really help teachers inform students of the necessity of a healthy oral care plan. 

• Core Integration: 
  • I think that an integration into core topics that might be made with dental health could be a science experiment where students can see the effects of acid on tooth enamel. The following lesson plan outlines where this could be connected to a science experiment. ADA Curriculum: Module 3 – You Have the Power (specifically activity #5 within this hyperlinked PDF).
  • Students would engage in an experiment where they would investigate the effects of acid on tooth enamel and record their observations.
  • Adaptable to 2^nd grade

• Connection to Next Generation Science Standard (NGSS)
  • Practice 3: “Students should have opportunities to plan and carry out several different kinds of investigations during their K-12 years.”

• National Health Education Standards (NHES) Applicable:
  • NHES 1: “Students will comprehend concepts related to health promotion and disease prevention to enhance health.”
    • 2.1 “Identify the proper steps for daily brushing and flossing teeth.”
    • 2.2 “State why hygiene is important to good health.”
    • 2.10 “Describe what it means to be healthy.”
    • 2.11 “Identify different ways that disease-causing germs are
      transmitted.”
    • 2.12 “Identify ways to prevent the spread of germs that cause
      common infectious diseases.”
  • NHES 7: “Students will demonstrate the ability to practice health-enhancing behaviors and avoid or reduce health risks.”
    • 2.1 “Identify personal health and wellness practices that reduce or prevent health risks.”
    • 2.2 “Demonstrate positive personal health and
      wellness practices.”
    • 2.3“Make a commitment to practice positive personal health and wellness behaviors.”

• Healthy Behavior Outcomes Applicable:
  • HBO 1: “Brush and Floss Teeth daily.”
  • HBO 2: “Practice appropriate hygiene habits.”
  • HBO 6: “Practice behaviors that prevent infectious diseases.”
  • HBO 7: “Practice behaviors that prevent chronic diseases.”
  • HBO 10: “Seek out help for common infectious diseases and chronic diseases and conditions.”
  • HBO 11: “Seek out health care professionals for appropriate screenings and examinations.”