Fine motor skills will play a significant role in toddler development; children will be able to coordinate the whole body by controlling their small muscles, the hands and fingers to do all the things they need to do on their own such as feeding, drawing, eventually writing. Engaging children in the fine motor skills activity as a play has both intellectual and developmental benefits to children even during their speculative years.
Training on development of good motor control involves consecutive practices by involving familiar practices that are carried out every day Children acquire these skills as they learn through everyday play-picking up crackers using a pincer grasp, turning the pages of a book, etc. These would look like simple things but are very complicated in coordination of the brain, hand muscles and the visual motor skills. With the help of specifically chosen motor activities, parents and educators can discover these key abilities and make the process of learning enjoyable and interesting to young children.
The developmental milestones of a toddler.
Ages 1-2 years:
- Stacking 3-4 blocks to build a block tower
- Scribbling with crayons (beginning tripod grasp)
- Using a spoon (with some spilling)
- Turning pages (may turn several at once)
- Beginning to show hand preference
Ages 2-3 years:
- Building towers of 6-8 blocks
- Using utensils more effectively with better motor control
- Turning single pages in books
- Beginning to use safety scissors with help
- Threading beads with string
Staging Set-Up to Succeed
It is just as important to create an encouraging atmosphere of motor practice as it is to carry them out. Mindful planning has an enormous effect on how well toddlers embrace the challenges of fine motor.
Establishing a Favorable Atmosphere
Encouraging Patience and Persistence
Start with simple activities, break challenging motor tasks into smaller steps, offer positive reinforcement for effort rather than results, and resist the urge to take over when your child struggles. Remember that developing precise movements and motor efficiency takes time and practice.
Art and Craft SESSIONS
Coloring and Drawing
Large Crayons and Markers
Provide chunky, triangular crayons that won’t roll away and various drawing surfaces like large pieces of paper or easels. Begin with scribbling and gradually introduce simple drawing games. These activities develop the tripod grasp needed for mature pencil skills.
Dot-to-Dot Pictures
In older toddlers, it would help to make simple dot-to-dot images that have 3-4 dots, and it can be worked on the dot count gradually, as their motor accuracy improves. It is an exercise that involves coordination of the eyes and moving the hand accurately.
Cut and Paste
Safe Paper and Scissors
Creating Simple Collages
Combine tearing construction paper (an excellent pre-scissor activity for finger strength), applying glue sticks or liquid glue, and arranging materials on backing paper. Provide a shallow container with glue and a separate tray with collage materials.
Stickers and Peeling Activities
Placing Stickers on Paper
Peeling Activities
Extend peeling skills to everyday situations like peeling oranges or opening food wrappers with minimal help. These functional tasks develop real-life skills while strengthening finger muscles.
Music and Movement
Combining movement with motor practice creates a dynamic learning experience, especially effective for active toddlers who might resist more stationary activities.
Musical Instruments
Shakers and Tambourines
Simple Piano or Xylophone Play
Toy instruments with large keys develop finger isolation and targeted movement. Show your child how to press one key at a time with different fingers, helping them gain control over individual finger movements.
Follow-up of Progress and Obtaining Answers to Concerns
Reflective thinking will assist you to offer the appropriate challenges and any noted problems that require professional input.
New motor skills as they become apparent, favorites activities, and compare current skills with those demonstrated a few months prior, instead of comparing to other children. Do not forget about the development of the hand dominance and about the sophistication of movements of a child with time.
Seek an occupational therapist or paediatric therapist when there is a complete lack of fine motor skills, considerable aversion to fine motor tasks, abnormal positions of the hands, or the loss of skills that are already acquired. An occupational therapy program can be of great importance to the children who have problems with their motor skills when implemented early.
Ask about motor skill development during parent teacher conferences at the learning centre that your child is attending and develop uniform methods of assisting them through the development of their motor skills.
Helping Your Child on All Steps of the Way
Examining this extensive portfolio of motor skill activities one can see that fine motor development is not only a crucial realm of development but can be fostered through enjoyable, mundane activities and through daily experiences. The given development of motor skills develops neural connections that help the overall development, promotes autonomy when it comes to daily activities, and provides a base upon which academic skills later on in life will be developed. These skills do not have to be fostered with special equipment, but by creating routine in children that allow them to cleverly engage in motor practice.
Keep in mind that every child develops a different motor activity on a different timeline. Some toddlers can develop strength and control of drawing with a more mature pencil grasp but can be unable to develop skills in using scissors; others might pick up threading beads quickly, but may achieve the ability of using utensils more slowly. Fine motor skills and ability to enact the precision movements and maintain the grip called pincer grip and finger strength is acquired with proper repetitive exercise and encouragement.
By offering plenty of different opportunities to practice fine motor, you’ll be gifting your child with motor competency and efficiency. With time as they learn these abilities, you will see them gain such confidence and independence in this wonderful world- they will grow the ability to be able to do and create so many things through those otherwise tiny finger muscles.
At Okinja, we recognize the value of play-based learning, to form these fine motor skills. Our early learning centre programs place much of these motor activities into our program that is overseen by trained educators, who can observe the specific development of each child. Looking to practice fine motor skills? If you want to see how we incorporate these fine motor skills in a supportive space, please book a tour of our centre. To learn more about the teaching approach that can allow children to develop the motor precision and ability so that they can learn throughout their lives, contact Okinja today.