Todays fine motor tip is an easy way to provide opportunities for developing greater fine motor control and fine motor strengthening. Provide your child with play dough (store bought or home made), a toy rolling pin (if you have one, but its not necessary), and a pencil or crayons. Show your child how to roll out the dough with the rolling pin. This requires your child to use 2 hands together which is great for developing bilateral coordination. If you dont have a rolling pin, show them how to press it out, using the open palm of their hand. This will stretch the small muscles within their palm (required for scissor skills), as well as wrist and upper arm strengthening. After the play dough is flat on the surface, show your child how to use the pencil or crayon to draw in the play dough by pulling the writing utensil through the dough. The play dough provides a good amount of resistance, which has 2 benefits. One, it requires your child to use a firmer grip on the utensil, strengthening those muscles. Two, the resistance makes the utensil move slower through the dough, allowing your child to focus on slower, more controlled strokes (as opposed to a marker that glides easily across paper). For younger children, this is a great activity to explore drawing and creating. For older children, this a great way to learn and practice writing letters. Sarah Eller, occupational therapist bringingtherapyhome
Posted on: Fri, 05 Dec 2014 13:00:48 +0000
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