I lost my tooth!
Duration/age
Losing a tooth is a big milestone for children. How will you celebrate it? Some families have the tooth fairy who leaves money in return for the tooth. There are other ways to celebrate though.
You could have a special lost tooth book and write the date the tooth was lost along with a the story about how it got lost. You could draw or download a map of all the teeth in your child’s mouth and as they lose the teeth they could colour the appropriate tooth on the map and write the date.
Materials you will need
- Crayons
- Pencils
- Cardboard
- Ruler
Alternative tools
- Stickers
- Calendar
Skills this activity improves
Why does this matter?
Children are fascinated by changes in their own bodies, and losing your first tooth is an important milestone. This is a chance to talk about how we all change and grow and will help introduce some new words. Telling the story of when and where a tooth is lost is important for expressive language and memory.
What does this lead to?
Talking about the loss of a tooth helps children to learn to talk about an event in a logical sequence of events, for example this happened first, then this happened and finally this happened. Telling events in the correct order is the beginning of giving and receiving messages and telling a story or a narrative.
Language to use
- Tooth, wobbly, gap, baby teeth, permanent teeth
- Front tooth, back tooth, middle tooth
Questions to use
- I wonder how we could find out some more about teeth?
- How many times do we need to brush our teeth each day?
- When do we brush our teeth?
- Which tooth fell out?
Useful tips
- A lost tooth is a good opportunity to talk about how to look after your teeth.
- You could talk about tooth-friendly foods and cleaning and flossing teeth.
- You might also like to take a look at the Cleaning your teeth activity.
- Remember to talk to your child in your home language.
More ideas
- You could have a special tooth-friendly food party to celebrate!
- Think about foods which are good for your teeth like vegetables and dairy foods.
- You might make a new tradition for your family like a special ceremony or burying the teeth in a special place.
Variation by age
Three to five year olds
- Predict how many days or months until you lose another tooth.
- Borrow books from the library about teeth.
- Create a teeth cleaning chart.
- Create a chart of good food to eat and food that can cause cavities.
Questions to ask
- I wonder how we could find out some more about teeth?
- How many times do we need to brush our teeth each day?
- When do we brush our teeth?
