9/28/17 – Healthworks Receives $5,000 Grant From The American Dental Association Foundation

HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum St. Louis is pleased to announce that the American Dental Association Foundation has awarded $5,000 in grant funding to help launch its new Caregivers’ Project, also known as “The Little Noggins Club.” This initiative targets parents, and other caregivers, of newborns and toddlers and encourages them to engage in the everyday types of play neuroscience has shown fosters healthy brain development and supports optimum life skill development. This includes the importance of introducing proper oral care beginning in infancy.

“Play enhances language, learning, creativity, problem solving, collaboration and thinking skills,” commented Shannon Woodcock, president and chief executive officer of HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum St. Louis. “All experiences in a child’s first few years will influence how his or her brain will develop – for life. We are excited about this new programming and the impact it will have on the oral health of young children and families.”

Through “The Little Noggins Club,” caregivers can bring their infants and toddlers to the 12,000-square-foot museum, filled with interactive exhibits, to gain access to a variety of self-directed and health educator-led activities. The programming reinforces the causes of tooth decay and the negative impact it can have on the oral and overall health of children. It underscores the importance of being intentional when it comes to limiting prolonged bottle exposure and shared salvia, avoiding sugary drinks, cleaning infant gums and brushing toddler teeth. It also encourages individuals to make healthy choices that will lead to great oral health – like visiting the dentist every six months and starting this schedule as soon as the first tooth erupts.

A local dentist commented on the importance of this type of programming and the influence HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum St. Louis can have on small children. “I have to say, I will be recommending this program to all parents of first-time patients,” commented Thomas Flavin, DDS. “I recently saw a 4-year-old boy who had visited the museum as preparation for his first dental appointment. Being a typical boy, he was a bit antsy until I came in to check him. Then, he was a perfect gentleman. He counted his own teeth right along with me. He knew what to expect and seemed comfortable.”

Access to “The Little Noggins Club” is available through general admission to the museum, which is $7 for ages three and up. Members and those under two are free. HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum St. Louis is located at 1100 Macklind Ave., St. Louis, MO 63110. To learn more about the event, or for information on the museum, call (314) 241-7391, visit www.hwstl.org, find the organization on Facebook or follow them on Twitter using the handle @youcantoucan.

HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum St. Louis came into existence as a result of efforts to expand The Delta Dental Health Theatre to address broader, overall health issues after Delta Dental of Missouri became a major corporate sponsor in 2004. Those plans evolved and grew more ambitious over the next several years, ultimately leading to the closure of the original theatre on Laclede’s Landing in downtown St. Louis after 38 years so it could be housed in the new, dramatically expanded museum. The Delta Dental Health Theatre was originally organized as a program under the Foundation of the Greater St. Louis Dental Society in 1977. In 2002, it was incorporated as an independent 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization.

# # #

For more information, contact:
Kelly Harris
(314) 436-9090