Brushing Time

For grown-ups

Help Hazel the bear cub brush her teeth: the top, the bottom, then spit.

Hazel opens wide. The voice says each step, and your child picks the tool for it from the tiles under her. Then they brush back and forth over the top teeth, then the bottom, and each spot fades after a couple of slow strokes. A tap on a tooth makes one slow stroke there, so little hands that can't drag yet can still brush. A tool that isn't for this step is named while the voice says which one we need. There is no timer and no buzzer. A round is two brushings, morning and bedtime, then it stops.

Child lock: tap the lock at the top right. The ways out hide and the back button stays in the game. To unlock, tap the lock and answer a sum.

Easy (ages 2 to 4): top teeth, bottom teeth, spit. Normal (5 and up): the whole routine in a row of steps: a pea-sized dab of toothpaste, top, bottom, floss with a grown-up's help, then spit.

Evening look (dimmer and warmer)

Why it's good for your child, what they learn, and how we designed it

Free, no ads, no sign-in. We count plays without names or anything that identifies your child, and your child is never recorded. Every picture is drawn in code. This game shows a routine; it is not dental advice. Ask your child's dentist or doctor about their teeth.

Why it's good for your child

Tooth decay is the most common long-term disease of childhood in the United States (CDC 2024), and brushing twice a day with fluoride toothpaste is the habit dentists ask families to build early (AAP 2014). A routine that a child has practiced in play is easier to follow at the sink. The line on the "All done" screen takes it to your own bathroom tonight, where brushing together helps most.

What they learn

The steps of brushing in order: a pea-sized dab of toothpaste, the top teeth, the bottom teeth, flossing with a grown-up's help, and spitting instead of rinsing. It practices brushing back and forth until every spot is gone, morning and bedtime, and the words top, bottom, first and next. Younger children brush the top and bottom and spit; from age 5 a row of steps shows the whole routine.

How we designed it for ages 3 to 6

The brush moves only when your child moves it, and each spot fades over a few slow strokes, so there is no timer and nothing to rush; a tap on a tooth makes one slow stroke for hands too small to drag (Hiniker 2015). Nothing races or loops, because fast-paced cartoons lowered 4-year-olds' attention right after (Lillard & Peterson 2011), and a tool that is not for this step is named with no buzzer. A round stops after two brushings on "All done", with nothing to collect and no "one more" prompt (Radesky 2022). It shows a routine and is not dental advice.

About the game

Brushing Time is a free brushing teeth game for toddlers and preschoolers, made like a toy dentist set. Hazel the bear cub opens wide, and your child picks the toothbrush and brushes her top teeth, then her bottom teeth, back and forth, until every spot is gone. Then Hazel spits into the sink. She brushes twice: once in the morning and once at bedtime.

Two levels, set by age

  • Easy (ages 2 to 4): "Brush the top teeth. Back and forth." Then the bottom teeth, then spit.
  • Normal (age 5 and up): a row of steps shows the whole routine in order: toothpaste the size of a pea, top teeth, bottom teeth, floss with a grown-up's help, and spit.

How a round goes

A round is two brushings, morning and bedtime, then "All done" shows Hazel's clean teeth with a line for you to talk about together. Before you hand over the phone, tap the lock at the top right. More: how we build calm games, questions parents ask.

Questions parents ask

Is Brushing Time free?

Yes. There is no sign-in, nothing to download and nothing to buy inside the game. It runs in the web browser on phones, tablets and computers.

Does it time my child's brushing?

No. There is no timer and no clock. Each spot fades after a few slow strokes back and forth, and the game moves on when the teeth are clean.

How long is a round?

Two brushings, one in the morning and one at bedtime, then the game stops on an All done screen with a line for you to talk about together. Nothing starts by itself.