Community Collaboration: Hodgson Vo-Tech and LACC

A group of Hodgson Vocational Technical High School students traveled to the Latin American Community Center (LACC). What was their goal? To spread the word about good dental hygiene and gain meaningful real world experience.

The Hodgson Vo-Tech students enrolled in the school’s dental assistant program are learning how to work alongside professional dentists as they examine and treat patients. While at the LACC, these students received the opportunity to demonstrate their newfound knowledge and skills on the children attending the LACC’s early childhood program. The students worked alongside professional dentist Dr. Nitchel Bastien as she provided close to 10 free examinations.

Also in attendance at the LACC were Hodgson students who are participating in advanced Spanish courses. They served as translators throughout the day and helped facilitate three activities for the LACC children to complete as they waited for their dental examination. The Hodgson students developed the activities summarized below.

Station One: Good Food vs. Bad Food = Comidas Saludables vs. Comidas Dañinas

The Hodgson dental assistant and Spanish students taught the children what foods are good and bad for their teeth. The children identified and stuck cut-out pictures of food onto a large poster in the shape of a mouth.

Station Two: How Many Teeth Are In My Mouth? = ¿Cuántos Dientes Hay En Mi Boca?

By the end of the day, the children at the LACC were able to count how many teeth they have. The Hodgson Spanish students counted with the children in Spanish and English while the dental assistant students encouraged the children to create a replica of the mouth using marshmallows and other craft supplies.

Station Three: How To Brush = Cómo Cepillarse Los Dientes

At the last station, Hodgson dental assistant students presented a two-minute review on the proper way to brush teeth. A song, sung in Spanish by the Hodgson students, accompanied the presentation.

The entire day was a blast! The Hodgson students left feeling energized as well as equipped with a better understanding of content they are learning in class.

I would like to give a special shout out to my colleagues and partners listed below for all of their hard work in making this collaboration and experience for the students possible.

• Bonita Green, Spanish Instructor at Hodgson Vocational and Technical High School
• Michelle Rabinovitch, Special Education Teacher at Hodgson Vocational and Technical High School
• Christina Hampton, Dental Assistant Instructor at Hodgson Vocational and Technical High School
• Wanda Burgos-Rincon, Director of Youth Development at the Latin American Community Center
• Adrianna Viveros, Latin American Community Center

By Tim Brewer, Instructional Technology Coach at Hodgson Vocational and Technical High School