Section 7 Different Types of Teeth For Use with the KS2 Science Curriculum Topic 3A Adapted by Oral Health Promotion, Devon 2014
Recap Lets look at what we learnt last time.
The four types of teeth 1. incisor (cutting) (piercing) (crushing) 2. canine (piercing) 3. premolar (crushing) 4. molar (grinding)
Incisor Used for cutting.
Canine The Roman’s called their dogs canines. Why is this a good name for this tooth ?
Premolar Pre-Molar means in front of the molars. Its job is to crush things. Especially nuts. Just like this nutcracker.
Molar Molar is the Latin name for this grinding bowl. This is what the molar does. It grinds our food before we swallow it.
Positions in the Mouth
Activity – Setting Up Teeth Give each pupil a box of plastic teeth Ask them to sort the teeth into the 4 different types before trying to put them in the pink base provided.
Hint – If Needed
Milk and Adult Teeth We have just assembled an adult mouth. The child’s mouth has no premolars. Or Wisdom teeth.* So how many teeth does a child have ? * (They were not present in the model either, but you can see the gap behind the molars where they could have come through.)
Comparison Child’s Mouth Adult Mouth Incisors 4 Incisors 4 Canines 2 Premolars 4 Molars 4 Molars 4 Wisdoms 2 Totals 10 X 2 = 20 16 x 2 = 32
Two sets of teeth to allow for growth infant has 20 teeth adult has 32 teeth
Jaw growth The baby’s mouth is much smaller than the adult. Thus it can only fit 20 small teeth. The adult has 32 large teeth. The extra ones are the 8 premolars and the 4 wisdom Teeth
Dental x ray Notice that there are lots of fillings in the back teeth !
The adult teeth follow the baby teeth down channels in the bone. Losing any of the baby teeth in the wrong order, due to decay or to accidents, can make the adult teeth wander off course and become crooked.
Looking After Them Your teeth should last a lifetime. Remember we only get two sets. If you don’t look after them your next set could be plastic !
With thanks to Graeme Jones, Liverpool Dental Health Promotion