Tooth Brushing Sensory Activity

Create a fun sensory activity for your children with white egg cartons, plastic string, and old toothbrushes!

Grade, Age Range or Specialized Learner: Multi-age, Preschool/Pre-K, 3-5 year old

Target Learning Skills:

Sensory Exploration
Fine Motor Skills
Position Words/Antonyms

Kindergarten Common Core Standard:

Language: Vocabulary Acquisition and Use
K.L.5b Demonstrate understanding of frequently occurring verbs and adjectives by relating them to their opposites (antonyms).

Preschool Activities:

Media Root

Cut the egg cartons into 3-cup sections to form sets of 3 pretend teeth. Emphasize position words and their opposites by having children brush the teeth up and down, front and back, and top and bottom. The plastic string will serve as floss for the children to work between the teeth.

Preschool Activities:

Media Root

To elevate the experience, make a paste from flour and water, and let children place it on and between their egg carton teeth. Tell children the flour paste represents plaque, a substance that builds up on teeth and causes cavities. Explain that plaque needs to be brushed and flossed away each day. Have children practice removing the "plaque" from their egg carton teeth with the brushes and plastic string "floss."

Preschool Activities:

Media Root

In addition, you can demonstrate how sugar sticks to teeth. Dip a small piece of sponge into candy colored paint and place it on and between a set of egg carton teeth. Remove the piece of “candy” and show that even when the candy is removed, it leaves behind a sugar trail. Have children practice removing sugar trials from their egg carton teeth as well. To make removing the plaque and sugar trails easier, add dish soap (toothpaste) to the children’s brushes. It is also helpful to use a sensory table, dish tubs, or trays to contain the mess.

Preschool Activities:

Media Root

After everyone has had a chance to practice brushing and flossing teeth, join together in your large group area to learn the following original rhyme from the KidsSoup member site. Use the rhyme-time to review the position words and their opposites that name areas where teeth need to be cleaned: up, down, back, forth, front, back, and between.

How to Keep Teeth Clean
by Erin Lassiter, KidsSoup, Inc.

Brush up and down. (Pretend to move a toothbrush up and down.)
Brush back and forth. (Pretend to move a toothbrush back and forth.)
Brush in front. (Pretend to brush front teeth.)
Brush in back. (Pretend to brush back teeth.)

Brush every tooth every day.
Brush your teeth in every way.

And floss in-between. (Pretend to floss.)
That's how to keep teeth clean. (Smile big.)

Submitted by KidsSoup member Beth Steward

View also our Dental Health ebooks I Brush My Teeth Booklet, Activities, and Crafts