Fine Motor Activities For Preschoolers

by Carrie Lippincott, OTR/L

Whv does it matter which fine motor activities mv child is doing now?
These are important years in the development oI a child`s hand skills. Activities that children are
doing now lay the Ioundation Ior their skills in writing, cutting and other tool use in grade
school. A lack oI appropriate activities and/or Iorming oI bad habits can greatly hinder their Iine
motor skills in school. Parents can help their children avoid this scenario by understanding a Iew
basic principles.
The Iirst principle that parents need to keep in mind is to let the child`s skill development occur
as he or she is ready. Trying to rush children into doing something they are not ready Ior can
cause more damage than good. For example, learning to write is a complex skill that most
children are not ready Ior until approximately 6 years old. By this age, they have a mature
pencil grasp and have adequate hand strength Ior more sustained pencil work. Their visual motor
skills are mature enough to independently draw vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines, a circle,
square, X and a triangle. (Beery, 1989). Likewise, most children have developed enough skills in
the area oI vision, hand dexterity, and hand dominance Ior writing. Trying to teach a 3- to 4-year
old child how to write can cause the development oI a maladaptive pencil grasp and wrong
arm/hand movement patterns Ior writing, and can lead to Irustration.
Hand Developmental Milestones:
Just as a child goes through developmental milestones Ior gross motor skills, a similar
progression oI developmental skills occurs in the hand. In preparation Ior writing, the hand
should go through the Iollowing motor milestones:
1. Development oI arches in hand: This is the concave surIace oI the palm that allows it to
shape itselI around objects
2. Development oI wrist extension that supports skilled Iinger movements. Try picking up a
penny with your wrist Iully Ilexed and you can Ieel the importance oI extending your
wrist Ior Iinger use.
3. Development oI an awareness oI the 'skill side oI the hand: This is using the thumb,
index and middle Iingers Ior manipulating Iine motor items. (The other side oI the hand
provides stability and strength).
4. Development oI an open index Iinger-thumb web space. I explain this to children by
saying they need to make an 'O with their thumb and index Iingers. Then I watch to
make sure that they do the activities successIully by keeping all oI these joints Ilexed. II
the 'O collapses, they didn`t do it right. II a child is unable to maintain this position, it
may be due to poor muscle strength.
5. Development oI skill in the small muscles contained in the hand. These movements are
best developed in activities that use the thumb, index and middle Iingers, such as
threading a small bead (Myers, 1992).
What is developmentallv appropriate for preschoolers?
One oI the most crucial items that can be done Ior preschoolers is to provide vertical or inclined
surIaces to work on. In this position, the wrist is properly positioned to develop stability and
skillIul use oI the Iinger muscles. When working on a Ilat or horizontal surIace, children tend to
straighten or Ilex their wrists. This interIeres with using the small muscles in the hand properly.
Vertical surIaces also encourage the proper positioning oI the arms and shoulders Ior work.
Many activities can be adapted Ior use on a vertical surIace by using book holders on a table,
tabletop easels or regular Iloor easels. Here are a Iew items that can be easily used on a vertical
surIace:
Stickers to make picture
ColorIorm or reusable plastic 'stickers
Felt boards or Ilannel boards Ior stories or making pictures
Chalkboards using sidewalk chalk broken into 1-1/2 to 2 inch pieces that can be held with
the thumb, index, and middle Iingers. Be sure the 'O is maintained. Some children`s
hands may be too weak Ior this activity. A small square oI sponge dipped in water may
be used Ior erasing the chalk marks. This is also held with on "O" or an open web space
between the thumb and index Iinger
Puzzles with thick pieces on a tabletop easel
Magna-doodle. When using this on a vertical or inclined surIace, put the 'erase lever at
the top rather than the bottom. The magnetic pieces work especially well Ior promoting a
pad-to-pad grasp oI the thumb, index and middle Iingers.
There are numerous other items that parents and teachers can use to Iacilitate Iine motor
development in preschoolers. The most successIul items are the ones that children request on
their own. Try to Iind activities that children Iind Iun.
1. Play dough: Flatten the clay with hands on a table and poke small pegs or toothpicks into
the clay. Cut with a plastic kniIe or dull pizza wheel. When cutting with a plastic kniIe,
watch to make sure that the child`s index Iinger is placed on top oI the kniIe.
2. Newspaper: Give children newspaper and show them how to tear it using their thumb,
index and, middle Iingers. AIter tearing it into strips, crumple the paper and use it to stuII
a scarecrow, snowman or dinosaur. For example, a dinosaur can be made Irom two large
pictures oI dinosaurs stapled back to back and then stuIIed by the children Ior a
classroom hanging. Construction paper can also be torn into small pieces and glued onto
a picture to make a collage.
3. Spray bottles: Use spray bottles Iilled with water to spray plants. Food color can be
mixed into water and put in the spray bottle Ior 'painting snow. Children also enjoy
using spray bottles to wash shaving cream oII the inside oI a sink. Spray bottles are great
Ior developing strength to maintain the 'open web space between the thumb and index
Iingers. Be sure that a small sized spray bottle is used. To practice separating the two
sides oI the hand, have the child use the index and middle Iingers on the spray trigger; the
ring and little Iingers should be around the neck oI the bottle.
4. Tweezers or small tongs: Over-sized tweezers, such as those Iound in the game
'Bedbugs by Milton Bradley, are good Ior developing opposition oI the Iingers. Also
look in kitchen stores Ior small tongs. Strawberry hullers work well Ior little Iingers in
picking up small objects.
5. Eye droppers: These can be used at a water table in the classroom or in the bathtub or
sink at home.
6. Coins and buttons: Watch to make sure that your child is using an 'O shape to grasp
the coins or buttons. Practice inserting them into a slot cut in a yogurt container lid. Have
the child practice picking up the coins with his or her Iingers, instead oI 'raking them
oII the edge oI the table with his or her hand. When initially using a very small object
with a three-year-old, please be sure the child does not have any inclination to put the
object in his or her mouth
7. Finger Puppets: For story time, use Iinger puppets on the index or middle Iingers,
keeping the ring and little Iingers tucked into the hand.
8. Tomy Waterfuls games: These are the water games in which a button on the bottom is
depressed to cause motion oI the water in the water tank on top to move small objects
toward the targets. When playing these games, be sure the child is Ilexing or rounding the
thumb.
Specific Recommendations Based on Age:
Three-Year Olds.
In general, three-year-olds should use a vertical surIace Ior activities on a daily basis.
Instead oI markers and crayons children should use preschool crayons on a vertical
surIace. These are the short, round crayons with the hollow center. To prevent children
Irom putting their index Iinger inside the hole oI the crayon (which tends to collapse the
web space) cotton can be stuIIed inside the holes.
Another good alternative is the Scrollie Animal Markers by Crayon Factory.
Some children can use 'sidewalk chalk broken into 2" pieces and held by their thumb,
index and middle Iingers. Children should be checked to see iI they have the strength to
maintain an open web space or the 'O.
All three oI the above alternatives help to support an open web space between the thumb and
index Iingers as the hand strength/skill is developing. For children that have a solid tripod grasp,
primary sized markers are appropriate.
Four-Year Olds.
All suggestions presented above Ior three-year-olds are appropriate Ior Iour-year-olds. Following
are additional activities Ior Iour-year-olds.
Scissors activities can begin. Children need to be taught to hold the scissors correctly
Irom the Iirst moment they use them (thumb and middle Iingers in the loops with the
index Iinger placed under the bottom to stabilize and help direct the hand).
Crayons are appropriate Ior children with strong, developed hands. Children with weak
hands perIorm better with the larger diameter crayons and markers. .For very weak
hands, the short, round animal (Scrollie) markers work best. These markers support the
open web space between the thumb and index Iingers. A child`s grasp should be
Irequently monitored to make sure an appropriate grasp is being used; that is, having all
the thumb and index joints Ilexed with an open web space. II the child has diIIiculties
with maintaining a tripod or quadrupod (Iour Iingers touching the pencil with an open
web space) grasp, drop back to using preschool crayons or primary sized markers and do
more Iine motor activities to strengthen the thumb, index and middle Iingers (Myers,
1992).
The activities given above are general in nature. II children continue to have diIIiculty with these
activities aIter practice, they would beneIit Irom an occupational therapy evaluation to determine
which speciIic skills are lacking.
ReIerences
Myers, C. (1992). Therapeutic Fine-Motor Activities Ior Preschoolers. In J. Case-Smith and C.
Pehoski (Eds.), Development oI Hand Skills in the Child. Rockville, MD: American
Occupational Therapy Association, Inc. 47-59.
Beery, K & Buktencia, N. (1989). Developmental Test oI Visual Motor Integration. Cleveland:
Modern Curriculum Press
July 21, 2004