Play Doh Fine Motor Work

Play doh is a great activity for working many learning areas. You have sensory, art, creativity, colors, and fine motor work. You can easily add in even more.

When I had only one child who played with toys and made messes, I thought play doh was such a huge mess and cinged when that activity came to the forefront. Now it is my favorite! The children sit in one spot and play for an extended period. Sure, little bits of play doh get stuck to the counter and spread on the floor, but the reality is that it is so much easier to clean up than toys spread around the toy area. 

Right now, we are loving using toothpicks with our play doh. You flatten out the play doh, take your toothpick and practice whatever needs to be practiced. You can write letters, write names, do math problems, draw shapes, and draw pictures. We love play doh! 

Hibernating Polar Bear

This is a fun winter craft. This is an art project that works fine motor skills and adds sensory input.

Supplies:

• Blue or black construction paper
• White paper
• Crayons
• Cotton balls
• Glue
• Scissors
• Polar bear printable

Activity

Have your child color the polar bear. Cut out a white mound of snow. Have your child glue cotton balls to the snow. Your child can color the construction paper to have snow and snowflakes if desired. Glue pieces on.

Ice Skate Craft

This activity provides a fun winter decoration while working fine motor skills.

SUPPLIES

• Yarn or string
• Popscicle sticks
• Aluminum foil
• Construction paper
• Scissors
• Glue or tape
• Paper hole punch

METHOD

1. Cut out skate shapes (older preschoolers and older can do this step).
2. Punch holes for the "laces."
3. Have your child wrap the popscicle sticks with the aluminum foil. Tape or glue one to the bottom of each skate.
4. Have your child string the laces through the holes (tape down the string on one side--you can see that done on the skate on the right in the picture). Go through both skates with the yarn. Then tape it down on the other skate when done lacing.

Turkey Lacing Craft

This is an art project and a fine motor skills project all in one!

You need:

• paper bag or brown paper
• colored paper
• glue
• scissors
• hole punch
• yarn

Cut out the pieces. Punch holes around the perimeter of the turkey. 

Have your child assemble the turkey. When she is done, have her string the yarn through the holes. 

Shape Art

This one is super easy for you to do (can you tell I am into the easy things these days?).

Have your child create an animal. Have her draw the animal and then cut it out. Then have her cut out pieces of paper in the shape of your choice and glue them to the animal. In the end, you have some fun abstract art!

If your child is not old enough to cut, you can either cut for her or have her tear pieces of paper. For little ones, even if all they do is glue the pieces on, they enjoy it.

Simple Summer Fun: Paint Finger Nails

Oh yes, this is a beloved activity of my girls. This is great--no prep, learn colors, practice fine motor skills, and practice sitting still skills! You can also get into the science of the painting. This would be a fun one for your color of the week every week. On your color day, paint your nails that color. Then you have a couple of days of pointing out what color is on the finger nails before it wears off.

Sticky Vowels

Vowels are the letters that hold words together. This is a fun craft to help solidify that idea in your child's mind.

First, find a glue clipart picture you like online (or draw your own).

Second, copy the picture and paste it into your word processing program. 

Third, resize it to the size you like and then copy it and paste it four more times.

Fourth, print this sheet out.

Fifth, you will want letters. You can write them, get stickers or die-cuts, etc. You could even put them on your glue bottles in your word processing program before you print.

For the activity, have your child color the glue bottles, cut them out, and stick the words on the glue bottles. Talk about the role vowels play in our words. Not only will you be increasing your child's understanding of letters in preparation for reading, but also practicing cutting, coloring, and pasting if gluing letters on the bottles. 

Straw Flowers

This is one of those simple crafts that are low mess that your child will still love to do. 

Supplies:

• Paper
• Scissors
• Tape
• Straw
• Crayons, markers, glitter, etc. as desired

Depending on the age and skills of your child, either you or your child draw a flower on paper. Decorate if desired. Then you or your child cut out the flower. Draw petals and cut out. Tape pieces to the straw. You can make a nice bouquet or just give out single flowers. This could be a fun gift your child could create for moms, grandmas, or anyone else they want to give it away to.

Simple for Mom: Stamps

The other day for our learning activity time, I got out a pile of paper and our tote full of stamps. I just told the girls to make whatever they wanted. They completely loved it. McKenna (2) was so proud of her pictures that she literally carried them around for hours--and that wasn't just at our house. She showed everyone she saw her picture. 

Stamps are great for working the muscles in hands, which is great for fine motor development. 

This activity took no prep time and was fast to clean up! Very simple for mom!

Simple For Mom: Toothpicks and Fine Motor Skills

One day at Dollar Tree, I found these toothpicks in these little jars. They have different sized holes in them--perfect for various age groups to use for fine motor activities. This is one of those things children find fascinating for some reason. You could use any variety of salt shakers for this activity, also. Simple for mom and fun for kids!

Teachable Moments: Coloring

Coloring has always seemed like an easy, fun, and effortless activity, especially for me as a mom. My oldest loves to color, to create, and would spend hours drawing if I would let her. Coloring has never crossed my mind as an activity that needed a lesson. That is, until daughter #2 came along. The very idea of crayons and paper combined strikes fear into her little wiggly body. And fun? Not on your life. When I noticed her running to hide when the crayons came out, I started to get suspicious. When I realized (after working for months on drawing circles) that she's a lefty (being taught by a righty) and has an incredibly weak grasp we started getting serious. (And to clarify, by weak I mean she'd draw and the pencil would literally fall out of her hands when it touched the paper). Using pencils, crayons, and chalk (anything to create a drag and strengthen her hand muscles) we started making coloring a regularly scheduled activity around here. Her hand strength has improved slowly, but her coloring didn't. Hmmm....
This is her coloring...on her 3rd attempt at this particular paper (I had multiple copies).







So, to switch it up a bit, we changed sheets. Again...yikes.

As you can see, the face and pants I colored. I sat with her and thought, maybe coloring isn't something you should always just let go without some instruction. And I wondered, Has she ever seen me color? Really color? How about learning how to make the strokes? Decide which colors to use?

So I sat with her. Talked about what colors we could use. We've worked on correct positioning for pencils/crayons, but we continued to talk about how smaller strokes help with staying in the lines. Lighter, controlled motions help mistakes not seem so noticeable. Because they ARE going to make a mistake. And some, like my oldest will want to redo the entire sheet. And others, like my second daughter, will chalk it up as "too hard" and list it among Activities I Don't Enjoy or Care About. (Also known as Scribble Everywhere So I Can Get Through This Faster).

So I taught. And she watched.

And something happened.

My child that abhors coloring sat and colored. Happily. And even drew a duck at the top of her paper (I haven't worked out why yet, but I see the duck). :)

We've got lots of work to do, but it certainly was a teachable moment. And fun.

I forgot how much I love coloring, too.

Be on the lookout for some teachable moments at your house this week. Take advantage of it and forget about the laundry for a few minutes. It'll be worth it. :)

Simple for Mom: Foamies Kits

Foamies are great for the day you need a simple craft project. The kit comes with all of the foam pieces pre-cut for you so that you just add glue! My kids love to make these.

I have always bought mine at Joannes Crafts. You could get them at just about any craft store I am sure. Joannes will have them go on sale. You can also sign up for their mailer that will give you 40% off regular priced items if you don't want to wait for the sale. I love to buy several packs when they are on sale so we can have something simple to do when I need simple!

While completing these kits, your child will learn about gluing skills, how small pieces come together to make a whole, will practice fine motor skills, and will have some interesting texture with the foam pieces.

Fall Shape Tree

Brayden made this fun project in first grade.

Supplies

• construction paper
• scissors
• glue

Activity

Have your child draw and cut out a tree trunk if appropriate. If not, do that ahead of time. Then have your child cut out various shaped leaves from different colors and glue to the tree. Again, if your child is not ready for scissors, you cut out the shapes ahead of time. Talk about the different colors and shapes as you go. When you are done you will have a fun fall picture!

Paper Plate Apple {plus fine motor bonus}

So this is my other fun activity from Kaitlyn's preschool class I wanted to share. It is a paper plate apple with a fine motor activity. You could do one or the other or both together.

The paper plate apple is a very simple craft. You paint the paper plate the color you want it. Then you cut out and glue a green leave to the top. You could also add a brown stem. Children LOVE to paint. You could also color it or do cheating paint and paint with do-a-dots. If I want to do "paints" but don't have the patience for paints, we use do-a-dots.

The other is a worm fine motor writing activity. There are simply pictures of worms, a dotted line for the path the worm took, then the apple the worm ate. You could find pictures of worms on the internet. Then find pictures of apples on the internet. Copy them and put them into a Word document. Then make dotted lines.

OR 

You could print the little pictures, cut them out, and paste them onto a page and draw the dotted lines yourself.

OR 

You could just draw the whole thing. I am not artist, but lately I  have come to prefer that method. Then it turns out how my head wants it to :) But I do check the Internet first in case someone has previously stolen the image from my head and kindly put it on the Internet first ;).

You then have the child color the pictures and trace the dotted like. This builds fine motor control for preparing for handwriting. You can see these lines Kaitlyn did get harder to do, and you can see how her top lines are perfect, and bottom lines are not. Good practice!

Pudding Sensory Bags

Ignore my shadow, please. :)

An easy way to practice writing and drawing shapes, letters, lines, numbers, and more!!

Working on addition? Give them a problem and let them draw the answer!

Call out a word and have them write the beginning, ending, or entire word!

Call out shape attributes and have them draw the answer (I'm thinking of a shape that has 3 sides and 3 angles).

Supplies: pudding (I used already prepared snack packs), zip lock or other zip closed bag.

Put the pudding in the bag, flatten the air out, and you are ready to go!

My daughter used a Q-Tip (her idea) for easy writing...and she was right! It's even easier that way. :)

Have fun...and don't forget to save one for snacking. :)

Watermelon Crepe Paper Pic

My son brought this activity home from preschool (above, age four) and Kindergarten (below, age five). I figured if it is good enough for both teachers, it is good enough to post here!

Supplies Needed:

• paper
• red crepe paper
• green crepe paper
• black marker/paint OR actual watermelon seeds

Activity:

1. Draw a half circle for your child. If your child is able, have him cut it out. If not, you cut it out.
2. Draw a line to divide the flesh from the rind.
3. Have your child tear or cut red crepe paper to glue in the flesh section.
4. Have your child tear or cut green crepe paper to glue for the rind section.
5. Glue on seeds or add black paint dots for seeds.

Color Mixing with Ice

This is a great outdoor activity but a few simple adaptations can easily bring this activity inside during the winter months and actually works well with a winter theme.

Ice is a great medium to practice color mixing.  J and I made yellow and blue ice cubes together. This is an activity all in itself, so be sure to include your little one in this step.  It's a great way to teach the process of freezing. Let them add the coloring and fill the tray using a scooper or a medicine dropper to include some fine motor skill practice!  Then they get to practice patience while waiting to play with their color cubes.

Fast forward to the activity, J first separated the ice cubes into bowls by color and chose to make blue water first.  I filled the tray with a small amount of water.  Make sure the tray is white/clear so you can easily see the water change colors as the ice melts. J really enjoys scooping and stirring the ice cubes, letting them melt in his hands, etc.  He basically plays while watching the ice melt.  This is a great time to let them utilize their motor skill practice with tongs or different size (and length) scoopers or spoons.  I’m surprised at how long a little ice can entertain! 

When he moved onto the yellow ice cubes I asked him which color the water (currently blue) would become and he of course guessed yellow.  I told him it was going to be a surprise that he’d have to wait and see.  He wasn’t convinced the water was actually green until the very end when there was no denying it.  He was sure it should be either blue or yellow!

We then filled the ice cube trays with green water to play with in the future.  This activity is free, entertains and recycles itself too!

Becca also blogs at Fun and Engaging Activities for Toddlers 

Sensory Ocean/Beach pictures

This activity works for babies (touch and feel), all the way to elementary aged kids! You have lots of options...

*Paint the ocean

*Paper towel paint

*color the ocean w/ markers

*Use the side of a peeled crayon and make the water

Once the water has been drawn/painted, start adding details...

*We added shells collected from a previous vacation

*spread glue on the bottom (we used fingers) and sprinkle w/ sand

*Add glitter to wet paint/glue for a sparkly effect

*Use pom-poms for anemone, collected sticks for seaweed (or ribbon, pipe cleaners, etc)

*Make fish out of construction paper to glue down, or use fish stickers

*Finally, stretch out some cotton balls for clouds.

The idea is to use as many sensory (Touch and feel) items as possible. Dig around drawers, craft boxes and see what could substitute for items under the sea. If I'd had green streamers, I would have added those for sea weed.

For young children, make a small version yourself and let your child touch it, and talk about how it feels (scratchy, rough, smooth, cool, soft, etc).

Simple Summer Fun: Squirt Bottles

The item that has occupied my children the most this summer cost me a total of $3.18. It is the squirt bottle. I bought three at the dollar store, and oh how much I have loved them.

All three of my children (6, 4, 2) are enthralled by the squirt bottle. They love to squirt plants, cement, flowers, trees, rocks...they love to see what happens when they squirt and see the designs they can make. They can also squirt themselves and each other when they are feeling too hot. 

Such a simple thing, but it teaches some science and works those fine motor muscles in the hands. 

Glitter Fireworks

What child does not love glitter? I think all children love glitter. And most moms fear glitter--oh the mess. But come on, the mess isn't that bad. Plus you can do things like put the glitter in a shaker to make it less messy.

This is a simple and fun glitter activity. It makes a fun art project and works fine motor skills.

You simply give your child a glue bottle and have him make firework lines. Then sprinkle your fireworks with glitter! Fun, quick, and engaging.