This page highlights the outreach I was able to do for the community to improve oral health knowledge, practice, and habits throughout the past semesters.
I was involved in a service learning project for public health class, where I was grouped with fellow dental hygiene classmates to share insight in proper oral hygiene to a 5th grade class at the Saint Demetrios Astoria School. We used a “tell, show, do” approach, teaching these students about caries and plaque formation, showing them images of the progression of disease over time without proper oral care, and demonstrated proper dental brushing and flossing techniques on a typodont. These children were curious and excited to practice these new techniques themselves on the typodonts. These children were very perceptive and receptive to our instructions, and understood the importance of oral hygiene. It was gratifying to know that we reached the children and opened their minds.
Another service learning project for public health class was to educate and promote oral health to pre-kindergartners at the Family Headstart Program Center. Proper nutrition and tooth brushing technique was taught to these young minds using visual aids. A video of a cartoon called called “Geena The Giraffe’s Tremendous Tooth Adventure” was shown to the children, where they learned about proper tooth brushing, permanent teeth eruption, the foods that cause caries, and proper diet. Along with this video, a stuffed animal equipped with a full dentition of teeth was used to demonstrate the Fones technique of brushing. It was so fulfilling to show these children the correct way to take care of their teeth. It amazed me how much they retained from the presentation, being so young.
