Even for adults, brushing your teeth twice a day for two minutes can feel like a chore. Now put yourself in the shoes of children who many times won’t even sit still to eat dinner. How are you going to get them to brush twice every day, for two whole minutes? Here are some tips to get your child to brush and floss twice daily!

Let them pick out the supplies

Kids love feeling like they are in control. If you let them pick out their very own toothbrush they’ll feel a strong sense of ownership and give them a good incentive to use it. Let them pick out their very own flavor of toothpaste too.

Lead by example

Try brushing your teeth alongside your children. This way you can make sure they are brushing long enough and with proper technique. If they are very young, you should probably assist them by showing them how to reach all those tough places. To start out, brush their teeth for them so they know what it should feel like, then let them take the reigns.

Make it fun

Brushing your teeth doesn’t have to be a chore for your kids. Try humming their favorite song so they can join in and hum along, this will help them time their brushing for 2 minutes too. If they hum their song 2 times the whole way through the 2 minutes will be up! You can also incorporate a good story for them that they only get while or after they brush their teeth.

Reward good behavior

Sometimes it takes a little something extra to get children to do something they are unsure about. Try making them a sticker chart and for every time they brush AND floss they get a gold star. Maybe start a piggy bank and reward them with some change every time they brush. No matter how you reward them, make sure they are doing a good job and aren’t rushing through.

Do you have any tips for getting your child to brush? Leave them in the comments below!