Fine Motor Development

Fine motor refers to the development of hand skills, including strength, dexterity, and coordination. At school, fine motor skills impact areas such as manipulation of school tools, opening containers, cutting, handwriting, and computer use. For students to use their hands in a coordinated fashion, it is important that they also have good strength and endurance throughout their arms, shoulders and trunk. If you suspect your student is having difficulty with strength or endurance, please visit our page on: strengthening. If you are looking for specific activities to target pencil grasp and control, please visit our page: Pencil grasp and control.

Activities to promote Fine Motor Development

Print: Fine Motor Development

1) Scooping with hands (in sand, rice or a tub of Legos),

2) Rolling balls of playdough between palms, rolling out snakes on the table and pinching playdough using finger to thumb pinch.

3) Peel off stickers and place onto a paper, a shirt sleeve, a chart, a stick or a pencil. This promotes a pincer grasp.

4) One Hand Paper Crunch. Place a piece of tissue, paper towel, newspaper or other flexible material on the table top. Have student place his/her hand on top of the paper and scrunch it into palm of hand without help from the other hand. Toss it into a bucket!

5) Hold a small squirt bottle with thumb and middle finger around neck of squirt bottle and index finger operating trigger. Use clear water to spray plants outside or inside, clean side walk or side of house; use colored water to create art on sidewalk or newspaper outside; use soapy water to help with clean-up.

6) Build shapes using mini marshmellows and toothpicks.

7) Use tongs to pick up a variety of small items such as marshmallows, small toys, cotton balls (etc.).

8) Small wind-up toys require thumb, index and middle fingers to work together with strength and precision.

9) Have students place clothespins on index cards matching numbers or letters - expand this into math problems or spelling.

10) Keep math manipulations in a containers that zip, snap or button so the student must use those skills to retrieve the items.

11) Stringing beads, cheerios, buttons or macaroni. Lacing a shoe string through the shoe eyelets. Vary the "string" by using pipe cleaners or straws.

12) Placing poker chips into slots or coins into slotted banks. Vary the position of slot such as vertical, horizontal, diagonal positions. Vary location of container/bank such as set on table surface or held upright (vertical). Changing direction of the slot and or position of the container works different muscles.

13) Finger push-ups: Use a clothespin to do finger push-ups. Use the pads of the thumb and index finger to open a clothespin and count the repetitions. Make sure all joints are slightly flexed or rounded.

14) Work on sign language alphabet for spelling words. Here is a sample website for sign language: http://www.lifeprint.com/asl101/topics/wallpaper1.htm