How do you get little ones to brush their teeth? First you have to catch them! This is a problem, especially for 2 year olds. They can be like a slippery octopus! Even after you catch your child, how do you clean his or her teeth? How do you convince this young child to participate in toothbrush time? You do not want to put your fingers near his or her teeth – yes, you should be very scared. You see, little ones do not care about cavities, girls or boys, inflation or clean rooms. They care about Thomas the Tank Engine, red rocket ships and dinosaurs or My First Purse Kidoozie, Princess Bowtique Minnie Mouse and Pinky Cosmetic Set. Two year olds are turned on by fun and off by necessity, you’ll have to relearn and invent new ways to keep toothbrushing exciting for them. Over the next two weeks I’ll share 10 tips based on my experience.
Here’s # 1 and 2
BANISH THE FEAR
If someone sticks a foreign object in your face, you will pull away. The same is true for kids. That's why it's important to let your child hold and play with the toothbrush before you begin brushing. I gave the brush
to my 2 year old grandson while he was in the tub and an amazing thing happened. My grandson dunked it in the water and sucked on it. He thought it was a marvelous invention for drinking and didn't understand why he couldn't use it at the dinner table. The toothbrush ceased to be scary and now is a fun object.
USE PEER PRESSURE
Kids love to copy. They have a natural desire to mimic fun activities. This is how our brains learn about society and the world around us. I must not be fun - my grandson will not copy me. He only wants to copy his big brother. He looks up to him figuratively and literally. I knew this. One particularly stubborn sleep-over night as the family was brushing their teeth, I left my grandson's toothbrush on the counter where he could reach it. I didn't tell him to pick it up. Instead I got down to his older brother’s level and we began taking turns brushing each other's teeth. He was having great fun and it showed. Not wanting to be left out, my 2 year old went to the counter, grabbed his brush and budged in front of his 4 year old brother shouting, "Me too! Me too!"
