Fine Motor Skills at Home

Posted by Susan Hyde Mar 25, 2007

When my son Aaron was four, his preschool teacher noticed that he struggled with fine motor skills. “He’s not using scissors correctly,” she observed, “and he is avoiding art and play activities that require fine motor dexterity.”

Soon after, an occupational therapist determined that Aaron’s fine motor development was somewhat delayed. He had poor finger strength seemed unaware of his individual fingers. Without intervention, the OT explained, handwriting and other school skills would most certainly be a problem for Aaron.

I read books and internet articles on the subject, and I realized that working on fine motor skills could be fun for both of us. In fact, Aaron was never aware that my homemade therapy had anything to do with a deficit.

• Dough and clay play: Self-drying clay and homemade dough encourage finger strength. Aaron had a fantastic time making pinch pots, rolling snakes, and using cookie cutters to make all sorts of shapes.
• Collages: Cutting pictures from magazines and old greeting cards gave my son more practice with scissors, and he enjoyed glueing the pieces to make new designs.
• Gardening: Digging in the soil, pulling weeds, and picking up small seeds provided my son with fine motor opportunities. He also enjoyed watching the garden grow.
• Sewing: Stringing lacing cards, making paper plate dream catchers, and sewing with a large needle on felt motivated my son to use his finger tips. At first he needed a lot of time and encouragement, but he progressed quickly. He also loved to make his own lacing card patterns using a hole punch on cardstock, and that activity further strengthened his hands.
• Mosaics: Making mosaics from dried beans, small balls of tissue paper, pasta, buttons, or small paper shapes provided fun challenges for little fingers.
• Keys: Aaron became the official key master. He loved the responsibility of fishing out the proper key on my key ring and unlocking the door to the house after each family outing.
• Game and Activities: Old favorites like Legos, picture puzzles, sticker books, pick-up-sticks, Jenga, Trouble, Perfection, Cooties, and Operation are fun and require fine motor skills.
• Cooking and Eating: What could be more fun than measuring ingredients, mixing cookie dough, kneading pizza dough, or eating with children’s chopsticks?

By the time he started school, a kindergarten screening tool revealed that Aaron was on target with his fine motor skills. He was confident and ready for school!