DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE PRACTICES : Developmentally appropriate practice means teaching children things that are appropriate/relevant to their level of ability & age. It means giving children activities that help them master the skills they are currently in the mist of practicing while also providing challenging material that will help them venture into something that is a little harder then what they are used too, but not out of their capability. These activities should be fun!!!
PRESCHOOL LESSON BASED ON A BOOK
DENTAL LESSON - School age program
Language
* Read a story about teeth, tooth fairy, or dental care to the children. * Have students cut out their own giant tooth out of construction paper. Then ask them to fill up the tooth with words they think of when it comes to teeth. Discuss why they came up with those words & give them new vocabulary to add to their tooth ex: molar |
Math
* Guess (estimate!) how many teeth you have then count. (children have 20 adults have 32 permanent teeth) After figuring out how many teeth the individual child has have them subtract that number from 20. Together as a class build a graph that represents how many teeth total are in the classroom by writing the number of teeth on a cut out of a tooth & then doing the math as a class. |
Science
Chicken bone experiment: 1. Pass around a cleaned off chicken bone & have the children feel how hard it is. 2. Place chicken bone in a jar full of vinegar for three days. 3. Have children make hypothesis. 4. After three days examine the bone & how soft is has become. 5. Discuss how teeth are similar in the sense that they are bones & if you don't take care of them they become weak like the chicken bone. |
Social Studies
Discuss dental hygiene norms What do we use? Discuss different countries. Do they have similar norms? Does every country have access to dental care? |
Art
Put out a bunch of supplies, glitter, construction paper, etc. Give children the choice to choose their own topic regarding teeth. examples: tooth fairy, mouths, animals, dentist, people with different teeth, imaginary creature, etc. Have the child write a few sentences or a paragraph about their art. |
Supporting ACTIVITIES
1. Look at different types of teeth under a microscope. Are they clean or dirty?
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2. Get in partners. Have one partner mix up dental vocabulary words & have the other person figure out what the word is. Switch.
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3. Write a play & present. Be creative! (example: Story of a tooth fairy who wouldn't come because the teeth were too gross!)
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4. Have a bin full of "fossil" teeth. Identify who they belong too ex: animals, humans.
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5. Create a dental word search or cross word for your partner.
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6. Have different cut outs of good foods (veggies, protein, fruit)& bad foods (candy, soda, junk) & have the child sort them out.
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7. Experiment: Place an egg inside of a cup of soda for an hour. What happens to the egg? Compare with teeth & brush it clean.
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8. Outdoor: Create two teams example: The cavities/ The plaque/ The Wisdom Teeth /etc.
Play tug o war (representing flossing)... see who wins! (flosses the best! |
9. Create a tooth brush out of art materials then create on it create an acronym using words learned.
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10. Build your own set of teeth out of marshmallows, toothpicks, & other art materials.
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OCEAN UNIT - INFANT & TODDLER
Language
*Read a book ocean creatures/based in the ocean. example: Rainbow fish. Talk & count as you read. |
Math
Eat goldfish if age appropriate. |
Science
*Sink & float different boats, shells, ocean figures in a tub of water. Which one sinks & which one floats? |
Social Studies
*Dress up water safety activity. Put on water safety materials, floaties, goggles, etc. Talk about sunscreen. Do warm up & stretching exercises together. |
Art
*Free painting to whale and dolphin sounds. |
Supporting ACtivities
1. Sensory tubs filled with sand and salt water with seashells, figures, etc.
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2. Dramatic Play: Costumes & dolls of stuffed sea creatures. Fishermen, oceanographer, dolphin trainer, etc.
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3. Play freeze dance to ocean sounds.
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4. Create waves with scarves while listening to wave sounds.
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5. Create musical instruments out of plastic bottles, salt water, sand, & art materials to use during dance time.
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6. Decorate fish scales or ocean creature/item of choice with glitter & other art materials.
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7. Sunscreen experiment:
Trace hands. Fill the hands with sunscreen. Let it sit out for an hour & see what happens. |
8. Sorting Activity: Sort sea mammals from other sea organisms/items. Coral/seashells/etc.
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9. On a felt board match the different body parts of different sea creatures onto the body.
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10. Sea shell painting.
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