Last time we started talking about activities that help toddlers and preschoolers develop the fine motor skills they will use throughout their lives. Today, we continue our list of summer activities that parents can do with their children to encourage fine motor skill development:
To help toddlers practice pinching skills, serve tiny snacks like goldfish crackers, raisins, gummies and cereal in egg cartons.- Lacing cards (available at toy stores in plastic and cardboard) are good for exercising pushing, pulling and threading skills.
- Use Silly Putty for stretching exercises. Combine several eggs of putty and hide tiny objects inside (googley eyes are fun because they make noise when you shake). Squeeze the putty into a ball and let kids find the treasurers.
- Put stickers on a metal cookie sheet. Toddlers love to peel them off and paste them on paper. Colorforms and re-useable vinyl sticker sets are other good options.
- Let toddlers sort colored pompoms into egg cartons with tongs. Small appetizer tongs are the perfect size for small hands.
- Coloring prepares little hands for writing. For young children use large, squat ball or block-shaped crayons. Short, chubby crayon pieces promote a natural grasp.
- Make a game of picking up beads, screws or anything hard with alligator clothespins.
- Let your child cut up paper with blunt plastic kiddie scissors.
- Peg boards for young children and Lite-Brite sets for school-age children encourage dexterity.
- Boys in particular enjoy screwing nuts onto screws. Start large and decrease size as your child’s proficiency increases. For safety, use machine screws with flat ends.
