How the muscles move and work together are often called motor skills. These are divided into small and large muscle coordination but are usually called fine or gross. Gross or large muscle skills develop earlier than fine motor ones but f comes before g so the order will be switched. Some examples of fine motor skills are printing, cutting, folding, coloring, assembling, stacking, twisting, pinching, etc. Construction toys, crafts and puzzles are all excellent ways to develop eye-hand fine motor coordination. Playdough is a terrific material to use and inexpensive. It can be purchased or you can make a batch at home.
Children learn best through play so here are some ideas for using playdough. Show your child how to roll a sausage shape by moving the hand back and forth. Sqeeze the sausage shape back together. Try rolling it to make a ball. What other shapes can you make? A mountain, a lump, maybe a pancake. Practicing cutting is super easy with playdough. Make a long thin roll and cut it into lots of pieces. Smoosh it together and practice somemore. Let your little one experiment and play with the dough. Remind them it’s not for eating. Part 2, gross motor skills are tomorrow. F is also for friends. Invite a friend to come have fun with playdough, too. What’s your favorite playdough recipe?