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Social Story for Brushing Teeth
A brushing teeth social story breaks the nightly battle into small steps a child can see coming, so the brush stops being a surprise in their mouth. Most toddlers who fight the toothbrush aren’t objecting to clean teeth. They are objecting to something in their mouth that they don’t control, for a length of time nobody has told them, at the end of a day already full of things they didn’t choose.
So the story below is mostly about the order and the ending: which teeth first, how long, and the moment it stops. Counting out loud gives the time a shape, and a shape has an end. Free to read aloud, or make one with your child and their own toothbrush in it.
June and the Two Minutes
A free story to read aloud tonight
June’s toothbrush was green with a soft head, and it lived in a cup by the tap next to Mum’s, which was blue and had seen things.
Every night it went the same way, which was the point. First, a tiny dot of toothpaste, and June got to squeeze it, very carefully, because squeezing is the best bit.
Then the top teeth, like going upstairs: little circles along the front, little circles round the side, little circles all the way to the back where the big flat chewing teeth live. Mum counted to twenty, slowly, out loud.
Then the bottom teeth, like coming back downstairs: front, side, back, and another twenty. June hummed through the counting, which makes a buzzing noise through a toothbrush, which is funny every single time.
Then the bit that was all June’s: spit. Not swallow. Spit, into the sink, as hard as she liked, which is a very satisfying thing to be allowed to do on purpose. And then the brush went back in its cup, next to the blue one. Done.
That was all. Upstairs, downstairs, count, spit, done. June ran her tongue over her teeth, which felt smooth and slippery and new, and took them to bed with her, and kept them in all night.
Read it a few nights running rather than on the morning of. Familiarity is the part that works. The aim is that by the day itself, none of it is new.
My toddler refuses to brush their teeth. What can I try?
Things parents often find help: letting them brush your teeth (or a toy’s) first, giving them a turn with the brush before yours, counting out loud so they know when it ends, and keeping the order the same every night. A child who can predict the finish often fights the middle less. How much toothpaste to use and how to brush at your child’s age are questions for your dentist or pediatrician, as the advice changes with age.
Should I read the story before or after brushing?
Before tends to suit a child for whom brushing is the fight: the story tells them what is about to happen, and then it happens. Some families read it in the bathroom, brush in the middle, and finish the last page in bed. Brushing after the bedtime story is common too, but it can turn the story into the last good thing before the bad thing.
My child gags on the toothbrush. Is that normal?
Some children are sensitive to the brush at the back of the mouth, and a smaller brush head or going gently at the back can make it easier. If gagging is frequent or getting worse, mention it to your dentist or pediatrician, who can check whether anything else is going on.