The Brush Early Childhood Oral Health Curriculum, a literacy-based oral health education program, will be coming to Head Start programs in more than 40 Georgia counties.
More than 4,000 preschool-aged children, their parents and caregivers, and 320 teachers across the state will participate in the 52-week curriculum, which is aimed at improving the oral health and school readiness of children entering kindergarten.
Participating children will receive weekly lessons on good oral health. There is also a parent education component that includes a monthly newsletter in both Spanish and English and a text messaging program.
The program is being funded by a $35,000 grant from the Renaissance Family Foundation, an affiliate of Renaissance Dental. The program was created in partnership with the McMillen Center for Health Education.
"Children miss 51 million hours of school a year due to oral health issues, and using the Brush! program to educate preschoolers and their families on good oral health will go a long way to ensuring that children show up for school every day healthy, pain free and ready to learn," stated Teri Battaglieri, director of the Renaissance Family Foundation, in a press release.
