DC not brushing teeth properly

[nuttiestnut]

She will not let us help her and have taken her to dentist but he could not get them cleaned as she kept putting her hands up. Any advice on how we can get her to let us help- her teeth are really dirty and we are worried she will lose them.

Is she scared of the dentist?
How old is she?

I would try a brushing routine and reward chart.

New electric (about £10) sparkly toothbrush
New character toothpaste
A timer
A song maybe?
And a book about teeth to help visualise and for her to understand the importance of them-a story book based on teeth

And a reward chart

She is 7- thanks reward chart is a great idea. She has always been ok at the dentist until this time and used to be ok with us helping with her teeth. One day, her gum bled a little and freaked her out, but we have tried to explain that to make them healthy again they need to be brushed. We got her a new toothbrush and disclosing tablets.