Teaching Sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

15 minutes – Part A: That furry feeling - Tooth test
15 minutes – Part B: Let's talk teeth - Eggs and vinegar experiment
25 minutes – Part C: Dental hygiene and me - Why is regular brushing and visits to the dentist important?
10 minutes – Reflection: Teeth pledge - Sugar, teeth, and health

Part A: That furry feeling

Step 1.

Invite the students to take part in a whole-class discussion about their teeth. Begin by asking the question:

Have you ever had that furry tooth feeling?

Not sure what that means? Encourage students to use their tongues and feel across the front of their teeth in their mouth. Does it feel a little furry? Or is it squeaky clean?

Use these leading questions to help the discussion: Have you ever wondered...

What the furry feeling on your teeth actually is?
Do you notice this more in the morning, during the day, or at night?
How do you make it go away? What do you do?
Is it as simple as brushing your teeth? What else can you do?

Step 2. Stand along the toothbrush line

Ask the students to think about how often they brush their teeth and whether they think this is a healthy amount? Then invite your students to locate where they fit along the line based on how often they brush their teeth.

Define an area in the room dedicated to creating a long line then place two objects to define the beginning and the end of the line. Use the printout slips for the Teeth Brushing Line slips to show the students the different toothbrush lineup points.

Select one end of the learning space to be the: I never brush my teeth - not unless I’m made to
The midsection is the: I brush once a day (usually in the morning) or brush once a day, (usually at night)
The opposite end is: I brush both morning and night every day! Without being asked!! And I floss, like a professional dentist.

Now pose the following questions to students and invite them to stand along the line in the place that most aligns with their answer:

What are your teeth brushing habits? Do you brush your teeth twice a day and floss like a professional dentist?
Or are you a once-a-day brusher…or a ‘when you're made to’ tooth brusher?

Let the students move to the area of the line or space that matches their teeth brushing habits. Look at the line and see where the students moved to, what types of brushers are found in your classroom? Hold a quick discussion about what teeth brushing habits your group has and how we can improve. Ask the professional brushes to share one or two great tips for keeping up their dental hygiene with the other students. Whilst conducting this task, ensure students feel free from judgment and remind everyone that sometimes people forget to brush their teeth. However, with this new useful information students may consider increasing their brushing time and find more opportunities to brush their teeth.

Part B: Let's talk teeth

Step 1. Egg experiment

This experiment can be conducted as an individual, small group, or whole class activity. You may have noticed that in the resources section you are given the opportunity to choose between using vinegar or cola. However, keep in mind that Cola stains the egg as it breaks down the eggshell, which may contribute to further discussion about the effects of Cola on teeth.

Begin by adding an egg into a glass or bowl of either vinegar or cola.
Then pose the question: How are eggs and teeth similar?

Go further and discuss and explore:

Invite students to suggest any answers they have and then use these to explore the topic further: Teeth and eggs are made of calcium, they act similarly when put into an acid liquid/solution, like vinegar or cola
Calcium is broken down in the presence of vinegar/cola
We can see this when the vinegar is added, something happens to calcium in the eggshell.

Provide each student with a POE planner and a pencil so they can follow the experiment.

Step 2.

Quiz time! Now that students have developed the quiz questions they are ready to partake in the 'Sugar Quiz.' Invite students to decide how they think this quiz should run to ensure that participants practice a high level of respect, but also have fun and are challenged.

Take a moment to ponder and really think about the properties of an egg and the cola and pose the following questions:

What will happen to the egg?
Do you think it will stay the same and the cola will have no effect?
Will it change colour?
Will it stink up the room?
Will it explode?
Will it shrink or increase in size?

Invite students to record their predictions, in the P.O.E planner

Step 3.

Watch and observe the changes:

Invite the students to look closely at the egg to see if they can notice any specific changes. The egg will begin to bubble as it reacts to the vinegar/cola. Pose the following questions:

What happens to the egg?
What can you see? (draw what you see, in close detail)

Step 4.

Explain what is going on and use a labeled drawing and keywords to describe what you see:

For example, the bubbles forming means the acid is at work (this is a similar reaction to teeth, with sugar).
Over time the calcium layer will be broken down on the egg surface, dissolving the shell. The sugar in our mouths is converted by the bacteria in our saliva into an acid similar to vinegar but can be up to 10 times stronger!

Explain to students that:
When sugar is left on our teeth, in small crevices, and on the surface of our teeth, it can give us the furry feeling and builds up over time as plaque. The chemical reaction happening in your mouth changes the sugar into an acid, it builds up in our mouths, the calcium and enamel layer of our teeth is weakened or decayed, causing holes, bad breath, and gum disease.

Ensure you read and use the 'teacher content' notes to describe this process to the students
As you read the above statement or develop a class understanding of the process in a different format, ask the students to draw a picture of the process they imagine is happening in the 'explain' section of the sheet
Provide the students with time to finish the P.O.E.

Part C: Dental hygiene and me

Step 1.

Why is it important to go to the dentist and move up the teeth brushing line?

Bring the students together as a whole group and give your students the opportunity to share and discuss what good dental hygiene is. Lead students to the following:

Dental hygiene is all about brushing our teeth and keeping our mouth clean. When we brush, floss, and wash our mouths and teeth, we are practicing good dental hygiene. This helps us keep our teeth healthy and strong. Over time, if the teeth are not kept clean, the outer layer - teeth enamel, is broken down and the calcium becomes weaker, just like we saw in our mini calcium experiment.

Just as important as brushing and keeping our mouth clean is, also thinking about what we put in our mouths. Being mindful of sugary drinks and sugar-rich foods is important as we learn about the effects of sugar on our bodies.

Step 2.

Now ask the students to think about:

Where were they standing on the teeth brushing line?

Encourage a discussion about the different ways of effective teeth brushing to remove plaque. Invite some of the students to share their dental habits.
Discuss the different ways to brush, floss, tongue clean and mouth rinse. Use the visual aids of the toothbrush, floss, toothpaste, etc., to help demonstrate dental hygiene.

Watch the Guardian Of The Gums lesson or alternatively read through the Teeth On Wheels Education Program to gather more information about your health and why it is important.
Or alternatively view- https://teethonwheels.com.au/oral-health-education-program/

Reflection

Invite students to work independently to make a pledge for change. The pledge they make is a simple promise to improve dental hygiene or to make sugar-smart food choices. Each student is encouraged to write their own pledge on a sticky note or directly onto the A3-sized posters. Students add the pledge or promise to show commitment to action or change.

For example, student pledges/promises could be:

I will endeavor to brush my teeth twice a day
I will try to use mouthwash every day
I will make it a goal to floss regularly
I will choose vegetables or low sugar fruit instead of sugary snacks in order to protect my teeth and boost my health and wellbeing
I will try to drink more water instead of juice and sweetened drinks.

After reading through the different notes and goals, make a class decision as to where the poster should be presented and how often they would like to review their pledge. If students feel comfortable with their notes you may wish to share this to the school Facebook page, to show their commitment to health.

Differentiated Learning

Extension - Investigate dentist procedures; root canals, teeth extractions, false teeth. Find out how much these procedures cost? Is it expensive? Or is it cheap? How could you save a lot of money? What could you do to help your teeth?
Differentiated Learning- Go further and explore how the calcium structure of the egg changes with different acid solutions (milk, orange juice, water, sugar syrup, etc).

Teacher Reflection

Take this opportunity to reflect on your own teaching:

What did you learn about your teaching practice today?
What worked well?
What didn't work so well?
What would you share?
Where to next?
How are you going to get there?

SugarByHalf - Sugar and Your Mouth

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