“Dancing with the Stars” star and former Miami Dolphins great Jason Taylor traded his dancing shoes, helmet and pads for a tooth brush to join local elementary school children and Colgate’s Bright Smiles Bright Futures initiative to underscore the importance of healthy dental hygiene in Miami at the Fienberg Fisher K-8 Center for kids.

Jason and Colgate are in Florida, which, according to the Pew Charitable Trust 2011 report “The State of Children’s Dental Health: Making Coverage Matter,” performed the worst with regard to ensuring low-income children’s access to care. Florida received a grade of “F” for the second consecutive year.

Colgate’s Bright Smiles, Bright Futures initiative dedicated a new dental van to Florida to travel to communities across the state to provide children with free access to dental screenings, oral health education and treatment referrals.

Jason Taylor hosted a mass “brush-a-thon” for more than 400 local students and helped unveil the dental van against a backdrop of music and costumed characters. Students received free screenings and learned how to maintain good dental health.