This Season, Help Your Child Develop Fine Motor Skills While Having Fun
The holiday season is the perfect opportunity for craft activities that will not only get your child into the holiday spirit but also promote the development of fine motor skills. Your daycare in Orleans understands the importance of developing a firm foundation of fine motor skills. These skills help develop coordination for activities like writing as kids grow older. Plus, who doesn’t love the opportunity to create decorations for the home? Here are five fun seasonal crafts and activities, perfect for daycare or at home.
Yarn and Bead Christmas Trees
For this craft, you’ll need a few small cut-outs of Christmas trees, some yarn, and a fun selection of beads and buttons. Stick with a heavier card and pick some beautiful shades of green for the tree. Secure the yarn to the card, and let the kids have fun as they thread beads and wind yarn around the tree. While playing, they’ll also develop fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. The fun mix of textures, mediums, and styles will also let your child indulge their creative side, too.
Gift Wrapping
Wrapping presents is a fantastic way to help your children participate in giving gifts. But even before they wrap a present for their grandparents, children can practice gift wrapping at any time. Using blocks, boxes, or even their own toys, practicing wrapping gifts helps them manipulate find motor skills in ways they often don’t.
Holiday Play Dough
Like the yarn and bead tree craft, this activity lets children place beads into play dough. When the kids are done, they can dig around with their fingers and out the beads. Besides being fun, this exercise provided a way to strengthen small finger muscles. Be creative with items they can use found around the house.
Sponge Painting
Using a sponge to dab paint onto paper is not only a unique way to paint, but a unique way to let your child get creative. Using sponges as paint brushes also helps younger kids develop their dexterity, letting them learn through their own experiences how to manipulate small sponges.
Woven Placemats
Finally, making placemats out of woven paper will help your child learn how to manipulate materials through a weaving motion while also creating items that can be included your family dinner.
Ask your daycare provider in Orleans about holiday crafting that will help develop your child’s fine motor skills.