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BY HEATHER M. ROSS
W here does the tooth fairy live? Is it under the pillow? Is it in
the woods? Why not in your house? This Oral Health Month,
it’s time to bring the tooth fairy home. By the time your child
is 12, they will have lost all 20 of their baby teeth, with their perma-
nent 32 here to stay. As your child gets older, it’s important to talk to
them about taking good care of their permanent teeth, and the per-
fect time to talk is while you’re both doing a fun, tooth-themed craft.

YOU’LL NEED:
A TOOTHBRUSH
SOME FLOSS
WHITE CARDSTOCK
PAPER SCISSORS
TAPE PENCIL
GLUE PIPE CLEANERS
COLORED PENCILS
STEP 1: DRAW THE TOOTH
STEP 2: SNIP SNIP!
Cut the tooth shape out along the line you drew. Erase any pencil
marks left or flip the white paper over so you have a clean surface
to work with.

STEP 3: MAKING THE WINDOW
To make the window of your house, grab a pipe cleaner and bend it
into a circle shape about 1 inch in diameter. Twist the edge of the pipe
cleaner and fold it to make an “X” shape in the circle.

STEP 4: THE DOOR
Grab another pipe cleaner and fold it into an arch shape. Place the
arch against the bottom edge of the tooth shape. Tuck the ends of the
pipe cleaner under the edge until your door is the right height.

STEP 5: GLUE
Lightly apply glue to the side of the pipe cleaner that will be touch-
ing the paper for the door frame and the window piece. Gently press
12 Washington FAMILY JUNE 2023
TOOTH FAIRY: SOVARINA/ISTOCK/GETTY IMAGES PLUS
TOOTH GRAPHIC: FILO/DIGITALVISION VECTORS; CRAFT PHOTOS: HEATHER M. ROSS
Draw the shape pictured (right). It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it’s
almost a tooth shape. The shape should be about as big as your hand.

If your child has recently lost a tooth, try drawing from reference!



them to the paper and leave
them until the glue is dry. (We
always use glitter glue for a
little extra magic!)
After the glue is dry, you can
tape the ends of the door pipe
cleaner to the back of the tooth
or cut them off, depending on how
robust your scissors are. (This step
should be done by an adult.)
STEP 6: DECORATING
Decorate your tooth house by coloring
the door and drawing flowerpots or hanging
ornaments on the outside. Ask your child how they think the
tooth fairy would decorate her house. We drew a flowerpot with
different colors of toothbrushes inside!
Primrose Schools of
DC, Northern Virginia
& Maryland
Experience the joy of
early learning at its best.

STEP 7: THE HANGER
To make the hanger, cut a length of floss about 1 foot long. It’s OK to
estimate, but you can also use a ruler or remember that one piece of
office paper is usually 11 inches long.

Fold the piece of floss in half and pinch it. Tie the floss at both
ends of the toothbrush, each about 1 inch from the ends. Double
knot the string in place while holding the toothbrush flush against
the table to make sure the knot is tight and the brush won’t slide
around. You can also use glue or tape to make it more secure if you
can’t get the knot tight enough. Make sure some of the floss hangs
down on both sides.

&WTKPI[QWTEJKNFoUƂTUVƂXG[GCTUnurturing the
development of compassion, independence and
resilience is just as crucial as setting the stage for
reading and math. That’s why our Balanced Learning ®
approach combines character development with play
and academics to give children a strong, well-rounded
foundation for learning and life.

RYAN MCVAY/DIGITALVISION
STEP 8: MAKING CONNECTIONS
Tape the ends of the floss to the back of your tooth house. Then,
hang it up so you and your child can enjoy your new decoration and
eagerly await the tooth fairy’s next visit.

You can even incorporate the tooth fairy’s house into your tooth
fairy tradition. When your child loses their next baby tooth, after
they place it under the pillow, knock three times on the tooth
fairy’s door to let her know it’s ready for pick-up! T
Learn more about the Primrose schools
of DC, Northern Virginia & Maryland
PrimroseSchools.com/DC Each Primrose school is a privately owned and operated franchise.

Primrose Schools is a registered trademark of Primrose School Franchising Company.

©2023 Primrose School Franchising Company. All rights reserved.

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