Don't Forget to Floss

A simple way to show children how to floss is to demonstrate the proper technique using an upside-down egg carton and piece of yarn.
egg carton = teeth
yarn = floss

Once your child knows how to floss, you can show him/her why it's important to floss using:

• rubber glove
• paint
• more yarn!

1. Put the glove on your hand and coat it in your child's favorite color paint.
2. Wipe the paint off your hand with your fingers held tightly together-  this represents brushing your teeth!
3. Show your child ALL the paint left in between your fingers that brushing alone doesn't reach.
4. Then have your child practice flossing between your fingers with yarn.

www.pedorthodontics.com

Smiley Snacks

Healthy eating is just as important as brushing and flossing when it comes to maintaining a healthy mouth.  We love to encourage children to eat mouth-friendly foods by creating smiley faces out of healthy snacks.

Snack suggestions include:

• carrot slices
• nuts
• orange & apple slices
• celery sticks
• broccoli & cauliflower florets
• and much more!

Take photos of your children's creations and then let them enjoy their healthy snacks! :) We would love to see your creations!

www.pedorthodontics.com

Fall Fun Snack

You’ll need:

1. 1 apple
2. mini marshmallows
3. almond or peanut butter

Just follow these steps below:

1. cut the apple into slices (for the lips)
2. spread almond or peanut butter on to one side of the apple slices
3. line the marshmallows up along the apple slice on the butter (teeth)
4. make a sandwich!

Be sure to brush your teeth for 2 min after you eat this snack!  Hope everyone is enjoying the first few weeks of school!

www.pedorthodontics.com

Back to School Activity

Subtraction and Loose Teeth! :)

You'll need:

1. 2 pieces of white paper
2. 2 sheets of clear protective covers
3. dry-erase marker
4. sponge or wipe

Just follow these steps below:

1. Draw 2 faces with BIG SMILES -  10 teeth on top and 10 teeth on the bottom!
2. Insert the drawn boy/girl into the clear protective sheet

Did you know that most children have 10 primary (baby) teeth on their top arch?  And 10 more primary (baby) teeth on their bottom arch?

Most children lose their bottom front 2 teeth first, followed by the upper 2 front teeth.
Lets get our children excited! Learning about our mouths and subtraction can be fun!

Always strive to fly into new heights!

Dr. Ko's latest favorite DIY craft!  A sure favorite for kids! :)

 

What you will need:

1. rubber band
2. sugar free life savers (wheels)
3. sugar free chewing gum (wings)
4. smarties or crayon (airplane body)

zoom...zoom... zoooommmm!

Visit www.pedorthodontics.com for more printables and activities! 





We had the privilege of teaching these precious three year old children on Monday!  

Did you that that there are just 3 simple ways to keep your teeth healthy and smile beautiful?

1. Brush and Floss
2. Eat tooth healthy foods
3. Visit the Dentist 

"Tooth" Healthy Foods vs. The Sweets!

Here is a fun activity for your pre-school child!  This activity will help to teach the importance of of eating 'tooth' healthy foods at an early age.

Foods that contain a lot of sugar may be left on our teeth after we eat sweets!  Sugars and food particles team up with bacteria/germs in our mouths to form plaque.  Plaque makes an acid that damages the outer layer of our teeth (the strong white enamel) and causes cavities!

It is perfectly fine to eat sweets.  Our recommendation is to brush your child's teeth right after.   A good time to eat sweets is after dinner.  Then, you can help your child brush his/her teeth before she goes to bed.

There are certainly foods that are better for your child's teeth.  Some examples are cheese, yogurt, fruit, vegetables, and milk!

You'll need:

1. 2 pieces of white paper
2. family or food magazine
3. pencil or black marker
4. scissors
5. glue

Just follow these steps below:

The set-up

Let the fun begin!

This little boy really wanted the marshmallows to be considered a "Tooth" Healthy food!  This activity was a great lesson for him.

The sweet tooth!

The happy healthy tooth!

When your child loses his or her first tooth (or any baby tooth), it is such a memorable event! Most children eagerly await a special delivery from the Tooth Fairy.  Here are some printables from Hallmark that you may find useful!

             

We have heard that the Tooth Fairy comes and delivers in a lot of ways! Anything from colorful coins, stamps for books, handwritten letters, notes tied in floss, dollar bills, fairy dust (glitter), footprints with flour or glitter, and much more. We love hearing your stories when you come in!

Dr. Ko's husband just returned from Zambia.  While he was there, he visited the Lilayi Elephant Orphanage, where orphaned elephants are fed milk every 3 hours, similar to their human counterparts!

Did you know that Calcium in milk makes your child's bones strong and healthy?  Likewise, the Fluoride in toothpaste, water, and some infant foods makes your child's teeth strong!

Your child's tooth has 3 layers:

• enamel (outer)
• dentin (middle)
• pulp (inner)

Fluoride makes the outer layer, the enamel strong!  So, we recommend using a fluoride toothpaste to help prevent cavities.  When your child has his/her first dental check-up at 1 year old, we will go over exactly how much toothpaste to use, how to brush and how often!  Baby teeth matter! Lets work together to protect the little smiles you love! 

In celebrating National Children's Dental Health Month, we wanted to share a fun activity for you to do with your child!  It's a great lesson to teach them how many baby (primary) teeth they have in their mouths.  
                            10 teeth on top + 10 teeth on the bottom = 20 teeth total!

You'll need:

1. 2 pieces of construction paper (pink or red)
2. scissors
3. glue
4. marker
5. mini marshmallows

Just follow these steps below:

www.pedorthodontics.com

Dr. Ko wanted to share her favorite sugar cookie recipe!  With Valentines Day coming up, these cut-out cookies are fun and simple for you to make with your children.  Dr. Ko's son, Topher, loves rolling the dough and using the cookie cutters all by himself!  Your child will, too!

Sugar cookies

• 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Dip in sugar or colored sugar sprinkles.  Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets/ parchment paper.
3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely. 

Who said that a Children's Dentist and her little ones can't eat sweets? Just remember to Brush 2x/2 minutes each day ... or more!

Every child deserves a healthy smile! As part of National Children's Dental Health Month, our office is participating in GIVE KIDS A SMILE DAY, this Friday Feb 6th, 2015! We are offering FREE EXAMS and CLEANINGS to those without any dental insurance. It will be a fun day for the whole family!  Lots of fun games and prizes for everyone!

Please call us at 603-881-8282 to schedule!

Today, Drs. Chow and Ko traveled to Boston to attend the 2015 Yankee Dental Congress.  It was a great time of learning new dental innovations and searching for awesome children's dental products for our amazing patients in Southern New Hampshire and the Greater Merrimack Valley!  Dr. Ko was excited to run into Wally! We love Boston-- Go Sox! We wish that all of our patients could meet him, too!