"Give Teens Something to Smile About"

The Division of Dental Health, Virginia Department of Health, has developed an oral health education curriculum for middle and high school students that complement the Health Education Standards of Learning (SOLs). The Health Education Standards of Learning provide the framework for instruction of the knowledge and skills needed for students to lead healthy lives. The goal of this oral health curriculum is to educate adolescent students about the impact of health behaviors on oral and overall health. This curriculum provides Health/PE teachers, School Nurses, School Staff, and School Health Advisory Boards with oral health information and training materials to promote integration of oral health into school curriculums.

This oral health curriculum was developed in a "ready to go" format. Each of the six modules has complete lesson plan(s) including:

• discussion information for the teacher
• leading questions for the classroom
• activities to assess student knowledge
• additional resource information
• Sample Pre/Post test for each module
• power point (cd-rom) for each module

Teacher/Evaluation/Feedback forms are also included for school staff using the module with students. These can be faxed to the Division of Dental Health at: (804) 864-7783. We look forward to receiving feedback on the "Give Teens Something to Smile About" oral health education curriculum.

The following modules are included in "Give Teens Something to Smile About":

• Keep Your Teeth and Gums Fit for Life
• Diet, Oral Health and Wellness Sports/Injury Prevention
• Oral Health and Tobacco Use
• Sports/Injury Prevention
• Oral Fads-It's Not as Simple as You Think!
• Careers in Dentistry