Healthy Teeth, Healthy Me Resources

Sesame Street's Healthy Teeth, Healthy Me, is a bilingual (English/Spanish), multimedia outreach initiative motivating children 2 to 5 years of age, their parents, and caregivers to care for children's dental health. The programme is designed to empower children to make healthy choices that will have a positive impact on their oral health, plus educate adults about the benefits of young children's preventive oral care and recommended strategies to establish a foundation for healthy habits early in life. Launched in March 2012 by Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organisation behind Sesame Street, the United States (US)-based programme is sponsored by Sam's Club and MetLife Foundation. The outreach effort is based on Sesame Workshop's conviction that helping families and their children make healthy decisions about oral health at a time when nurturing children's overall development is so critical and the subsequent positive effects can last a lifetime.

The resources include materials for children, parents, and dental professionals seeking a way to reach out to young children and their families who are already familiar with Sesame Street's Muppet characters Elmo and Abby. More specifically:

• The outreach kit contains: an original Sesame Street DVD featuring songs by Elmo and Abby; a Guide for Families with information and tools to use with children to reinforce good oral health habits, an online Brushing Teeth game, and a digital Guide for Providers designed to help health professionals create partnerships with families and emphasise the importance of having a "dental home" for young children. Sample suggestion included within one of the provider guidance documents: "Children's artwork can be a great way to spark some healthy-teeth talk. Provide paper and crayons in the waiting area, and encourage children to draw things they do to keep their teeth and bodies healthy. Post the pictures on the wall." Click here to access the toolkit, as well as activity ideas, a video library, and other interactive tools.
• Mouth Healthy, from the American Dental Association, is organised by life stage and included a section just for children, with the Sesame Street materials featured.