Crafts are a great way to have fun while also building your child’s fine motor and sensory-motor skills. There are several ways to use common objects you have around the house to strengthen those small muscles of the hand, improve dexterity, refine grasping skills, and provide great entertainment!
Snowmen are always fun to make. You can use several different objects around the house to substitute for a traditional paint brush and really work those fine motor muscles. Dab the paint on with a sponge, pat it on with a cotton ball, or brush it on with a q-tip. Cut a smaller piece from a large sponge to promote a more refined grasp. You can also glue cotton balls onto paper to make your snowman – have your child pull the cotton ball into smaller pieces before gluing on.
Creating snowflakes is a great way to foster creativity and build cutting skills. Younger children that are not yet scissor-savy can contribute by simply making snips along the borders of the paper. Have your child decorate their snowflakes by tearing tissue paper into small pieces, rolling the pieces into a ball with their fingertips, and then gluing them on. For an added challenge, have your child dip a toothpick into glue and then use it to pick up the tissue paper pieces (go ahead and apply drops of glue onto the snowflake for your child to stick the paper pieces to).
Have any left over packing peanuts from your online Christmas shopping? Use them to make snow flakes in a picture. Tearing the packing peanuts is a great fine motor activity. Have you child use tongs or a toothpick to place them onto their masterpiece! You can also have fun with packing peanuts by placing a lot of them into a large box and hiding treasure inside for your child to find – it’s a great sensory-motor activity!
Sometimes the best craft supplies can be found at home rather than in the store!!!!
