TOOTH-BRUSH DRILL

Waipa Post, Volume XXIV, Issue 1638, 7 May 1925, Page 5

TOOTH-BRUSH DRILL

“TOO MANY SWEET SHOPS.”

“The whole trouble is that there are too many sweet shops in close proximity in the schools,” stated the headmaster (Mr W. A. Swinbourn) when the question of a toothbrush drill was discussed at the College Street (Palmerston North) School Committee last Friday evening. The chairman, Mr E. West, asked what was being done at the school as regards the care of the children’s teeth. The headmaster stated that it was a well known fact that more than half of the children’s complaints were directly caused by badly attended teeth. His predecessor, Mr D. W. Low, instituted toothbrush drill under the supervision of the teachers, and he had allowed the practice to be continued for some time. The practice had been of great advantage to the pupils of the school, but apart from the good derived from the action it meant that the mere fact of the children bringing the brush to school brought the matter under, the attention of the parents. During the last part of last year the teachers were insructed to make inspections every now and then while the headmaster, himself, made one or two inspections, the last one showing that the childrens’ teeth were in fairly good condition. The whole thing was to get the children into the habit of cleaning their teeth and whether it was done at school or home, did not matter. Personally he was in favour of the work being done at home, and he had told the children that if their teeth were not cleaned properly then he would start the toothbrush drill again. The chairman sated that he personally thought the idea a good one.