FLUORIDE GAMES
One of my favorites, with kids in 4th and 5th grades, is to play a game after a lesson on Fluoride (what it does, where it is found, how it was discovered). The game consists of writing the word "FLUORIDE" on the blackboard. I tell the kids that the word fluoride contains many other words, and the game is to see how many words they can come up with. The rules are that they may use only the letters in fluoride - for instance, the words "ride" and "if" count, but "flood" has too many "o"'s. As they raise their hands and suggest words, I write them on the board. When they can't think of any more, I count what's there and the game is over. There are more than 60 words that can be made and the kids really get into it. The teachers love it too.
My second favorite lesson is on bottled water and ingredients. I bring lots of different kinds of empty water bottles with the labels still on them, and toss them into the class to different areas of the classroom. Then I have the kids that catch them read the ingredients to me. Only one kind has fluoride. We talk about how much water they drink, how water is used, what fluoride does, brushing with fluoride toothpaste, even how PVC bottles contribute to pollution and how often one should re-use a water bottle if at all.
After both lessons, I distribute the month brushing calendar and for those who bring it back a month later, I have prizes of plastic water bottles that say "I drink fluoridated water" on them.
Jo