Grade one students at Father Gorman Community School had the opportunity to learn about dental hygiene with local dentist Dr. Nekky Jamal.
Grade One Teacher Kaitlin McKenzie says that her students have been learning about oral health, as well as parts of the tooth, therefore having a dentist come into the classroom has helped wrap up the unit.
“They’ve learnt a lot about dental health and it was really nice to have him as a positive role model to encourage that and also to see that there are kind people in our community that are making a difference in others lives.”
Kindness has been a focus for McKenzie’s classroom throughout the year, so much so that her students have created their own Kind Kids Club. McKenzie says that Dr. Jamal has been an example of what kindness looks like in the community and so her students awarded him with an honourary membership to the club.
“I like the dentist because he’s kind,” says grade one student Jade Icalia
Dr. Jamal says that going into classrooms and talking to the kids not just the parents about dental health is important in preventing bad habits.
“It’s really important for me to help teach our younger generation that eating bad food is not only bad for our body, but bad for our teeth. It’s really unfortunate when we see so many kids under the age of five come to the office and they need over 10 teeth fixed.”
He adds that kindness is a key component when talking to kids and that spreading small acts of kindness can lead to bigger things.