DMD students bring healthy smiles to Sidney Lanier Center

IMG_3894By Rachel Donohue

Dental students in the College of Dentistry DMD Class of 2019 recently visited the Sidney Lanier Center, where volunteers helped teach 22 children in second, third and fourth grade about the importance of oral hygiene.

The elementary students watched a Charlie Brown and Snoopy video about the proper way to brush and floss teeth before learning about plaque and the role it plays in tooth decay.

Students were then split into smaller groups to dive into hands-on activities to better enforce the information.

At the first station, a brushing and flossing station, each child received a new Oral B tooth brush. The kids then practiced how to brush and floss using their new toothbrush with the help of a super friendly Gator puppet.

At the nutrition station with “Mr. Gross Mouth,” the kids had to decide which foods were considered “good” for your teeth and which foods were “bad.”

The final station featured a coloring and word search area with dental terms and drawings.

Jenna Shuman, community service coordinator for the UFCD DMD Class of 2019, believed the event to be a huge success.

“It was extremely rewarding to teach these children about oral health,” Shuman said. “Many of them do not have access to routine dental care, so we were thrilled to introduce them to good oral hygiene habits.”