Incorporation of storytelling as a method of oral health education among 3–6-year-old preschool children

Abstract

Purpose: To find the effectiveness of storytelling as a method of oral health education among 3–6-year-old preschool children. Design: A non-randomized experimental pre–post study design. Setting: Preschools located in urban Bengaluru. Subjects: Two hundred, 3–6 years, preschool children. Intervention: An age-appropriate story with oral health messages was delivered using hand puppets during the storytelling session in preschool. Measures: A self-administered 11-item picture-based, closed-ended questionnaire assessed children’s knowledge and attitude at baseline and post-intervention. A 1-week audit sheet to monitor the brushing, eating, and mouth rinsing pattern was administered for the parents to measure the change in behavior post-intervention. Analysis: Change in KAP mean scores was assessed using the “Wilcoxon Sign Rank test” at p < 0.05. “Cohen’s d” was used to calculate the “Effect size”. Results: Significant improvement was observed in mean KAP score (pre 7.52 ± 1.95 post 8.60 ± 1.55, p = 0.0001) with effect size 0.2. There was a significant increase in the knowledge and attitude and practice score, knowledge (pre 2.97 ± 1.02, post 3.63 ± 0.78, p = 0.0001, effect size: 0.3), attitude (2.27 ± 0.81, 2.77 ± 0.60, p = 0.000, effect size: 0.3), and practice (2.04 ± 1.07, 2.28 ± 0.60, p = 0.0001, effect size: 0.1). Conclusion: The storytelling method was effective in improving the oral health-related KAP of children aged 3–6 years. Significance: This study attempts to inculcate good oral hygiene practices at a very early stage by targeting 3–6-year-old preschool children. Storytelling being humankind’s oldest form of teaching and motivating change, can not only address the prevailing oral disease burden but also the oral health inequality by reaching out to every community.