Gross & Fine Motor Skills

In early childhood, exercises that build good posture, core strength, stability, and balance are crucial for a child’s holistic development. According to pediatricresources.org, posture and core strength can affect multiple areas of development, such as speech, attention span and social skills. This was my experience too in the classroom. Many of the children who needed …

During early childhood, children develop their fine motor skills in fairly predictable patterns. Fine motor skill involves controlling the muscles of the hands and fingers, tongue, eyes and toes. Some examples of fine motor skills are cutting, dressing and building a puzzle. Here is a comprehensive fine motor skills development checklist from birth to the …

Try these fun popsicle stick crafts with your kids in class or at home! While some of these activities might require a little more direction, most are simple and open-ended and don’t require children to follow a set of exact steps. Let kids interpret them and leave their creative mark. Using your recycled popsicle sticks …

Try out these simple playdough fine motor skills activities to strengthen those little muscles in kids’ hands. This is an important step in developing pre-writing skills and independence. Aside from fine motor development, there are many other benefits of playdough play, such as developing: Here are some fine motor playdough activity ideas to inject a …

Fine motor control is crucial in a young child’s development as it forms the foundation for skills like writing and drawing, and self-care tasks like getting dressed.  Here are some fine motor games for preschool kids that are specifically designed to strengthen small muscles. They are simple ideas for games to play, rather than regular …

Art is an integral part of every young child’s life and important for healthy development. Children are naturally drawn to creative expression. A child who is faced with some paper and pencils will seldom need encouragement to start drawing. You may be wondering how you can extend your children’s creative abilities. It’s as simple as …

Are you looking for some simple ideas for gross motor activities for your little ones? This is a comprehensive list of the best types of activities that will develop kids’ gross motor skills.  P.S. This post includes a handy printable of these activities. They are all simple, easy-to-prep, everyday activities that are suitable to do …

In early childhood, children develop and learn to control the small muscles of their bodies, including the hands, fingers, eyes, tongue and toes. This is known as fine motor development. Fine motor movements look different at various ages. A baby, for example, has to learn to hold a spoon while eating, whereas an older child …

In early childhood, children develop and learn to coordinate the large muscles of their bodies. This is known as gross motor development. Some general examples of gross motor skills are: Below is a list of gross motor skills examples by age, from babies all the way up to children in primary/elementary school. P.S. This post …

Motor skills are a crucial part of development during early childhood. Here is a gross motor milestones chart, with a list of the skills acquired at various ages. It’s important to remember that children develop at their own pace, so use these as a guide only.  P.S. This post includes a handy printable of these …

Young children can develop their gross motor skills through play and exploration. A few examples of gross motor skills include: While countless toys on the market claim to be essential for promoting gross motor development, the truth is that — aside from using the environment and a child’s own body — there are only a …

Painting with water. Does that even classify as a creative activity when there’s nothing to show at the end? Absolutely! Why? Like all other process art activities, this is the kind of simple, sensory activity I recommend to parents and teachers because children are always learning while they’re engaged in the process of creating, regardless …