8 Ways to Getting Kids to Brush Their Teeth | Toddlers & Babies

Shares

How to get your child to brush their teeth

Is getting your kids to brush their teeth becoming a chore in your house?

Sometimes it is in ours, while my husband was just playing around in this picture we often have times when teeth brushing is a big battle.

It’s funny how kids go through stages of not minding it, then they do. Independence thing? Surely it is.

Here are a few fun ideas that we use with my two little monkeys to keep teeth brushing fun and less of a chore.

  1. My 1 year old doesn’t seem to mind having her teeth brushed, unless she is teething. At this age if the tooth brush is bothering her we take a cold wash cloth and wipe down her teeth and gums. Brushing at this age is really more for habit, a cold wash cloth will not only wipe down her gums it will also provide a little relief when biting down on it. 
  2. When they fight you to use the tooth brush all by themselves, purchase a second toothbrush that you can use to brush their teeth, taking turns while they use their tooth brush. 
  3. Another option for your teething toddler is the Baby Banana Brush. This is a teething toothbrush that is made of a strong silicone. Perfect for freezing, chewing and decreases the risk of toothbrush injury. Andrea has been using a Baby Banana Brush since she was 5 months old and still loves it. 
  4. Let your little one brush your teeth! Sometimes we will give them our toothbrush and let our kids brush our teeth, then taking turns to brush theirs. Gives them control and makes it fun! 
  5. As they get older, the toothbrush does matter. Find ones that are fun! Andrew loves his SpongeBob spin brush toothbrush. They even make a spin brushthat your child can decorate with stickers. 
  6. Sing with your kids. We use the tune of “London Bridges” But we sing “Now it’s time to brush our teeth, brush our teeth, brush our teeth, Now it’s time to brush our teeth, until we are doneee” LOL Okay so it’s a silly song but try a song of your own! Songs in our house always make those “teeth pulling tasks” much more fun to do. 
  7. Andrea, my 1 year old, also loves to watch herself in the mirror while we brush. It’s a game to watch baby brush her teeth! 
  8. Sometimes when it is time for bed we will find that our 4 year old is overly tired, teeth brushing is like pulling teeth! We make compromises with him and let him do things like brush his teeth out in the kitchen for something new. Or let him watch cartoons on TV while he brushes. 

You can see that we have a lot of suggestions and honestly we use all of these, all of the time. Every child is going to be different and every situation will be different, hopefully one of these suggestions will work for you as they have for us.

What tips do you have for happy teeth brushing in your home?

 

Shares

Comments are closed.