Jj is for Jottings 166. Motor Skills and Screen Time in Preschoolers, Part 2.

As promised in the previous article on motor skills and screen time, in this article we will cover suggestions for both gross and fine motor activities, providing both fun and skill development for your preschoolers. And these suggestions are easy to set up, and many are portable. In this way you can take them to waiting rooms, restaurants and visiting people who are not set up for children.  Keep a little bag of them, perhaps in the car, so they are with you whenever the opportunity arises.  These simple activities can ensure your preschooler is engaged, learning, and developing essential motor skills.

 

ACTIVITIES FOR DEVELOPING GROSS MOTOR SKILLS.

All these activities are fun for the children, but also for the adults.

1. Popping Bubbles. Blow bubbles and have your child chase and pop them – which they will probably do without any invitation from you.  And they can blow the bubbles, too.
2. Balloon Play. Blow up a balloon and have your child keep it off the ground by tapping it.
3. Bowling: Set up some empty bottles so the child can roll a soft ball to knock them down.
4. Cushion Path. Put cushions or pillows on the floor and let your child walk or jump from one to the other.
5. Dance Freeze. Play their favourite music for them to dance to, but they have to freeze when the music stops.  (This is a good exercise in self-regulation, too.)
6. Shadow Play. On a sunny day, encourage your child to play with their shadows.  They can jump over them, dance with them or try to escape them.  No equipment needed – except the sun!
7. Animal Walks. Easy – just encourage them to walk like different animals across the room – slither like a snake; hop like a kangaroo or a frog (different kinds of hopping); gallop like a horse.  And there’s no equipment required here, either.
8. Tossing a Bean Bag. Create targets using hula hoops, a circle of rope or string, buckets etc and have them toss bean bags into them.
9. Simon Says. Just in case you don’t know how to play this, give simple instructions which the child follows only if it begins with “Simon says…”    “Simon says jump up and down twice.”  (The child does it.)  “Put your hand on your head.”   (The child doesn’t do it.)  This is also an excellent exercise for self-regulation, as well as for listening and movement.
10. Scavenger Hunt.  Make a simple list of items for the child to find either inside the house or in the garden.

There are more gross motor activities described in the second part of creativity in children.  And don’t forget about the importance of posture, which I think we could probably slot into gross motor development.

A CHECKLIST FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF FINE MOTOR SKILLS.

Kid Sense has put together this useful developmental checklist of fine motor skills:  https://childdevelopment.com.au/resources/child-development-charts/fine-motor-developmental-checklist/

ACTIVITIES FOR DEVELOPING FINE MOTOR SKILLS.

Once again, these activities are portable and easy to put together.

1. Play-Dough Exploration: Playing with play dough develops fine motor skills, but also strength in fingers and hands.  And children love the feel of squashing it between their fingers.
2. Pencils or Crayons and Paper: Carry a small notebook and pencils or crayons, and children can doodle, draw or practise copying their name.
3. Scissors and Paper: Not so portable, just because of the mess, but being able to cut with safety children’s scissors is an important fine motor skill. You’d be surprised at how many children in early primary school have no scissors skills.  This makes it very awkward and time-consuming when they meet activities in the curriculum which require cutting and pasting.
4. Paper Punch: A small paper punch and scrap paper can be a lot of fun, but can also be a bit messy for anywhere away from home.
5. Sticker Art: A sheet of stickers and some paper allows children to peel off the stickers and create pictures. This is a great activity for at the table in restaurants, and is very easy to pack.
6. Threading Beads or Buttons: Use coloured beads with holes in them and a suitable long piece of string or something similar. It’s two for the price of one – picking up the beads and then the threading movements. “See how many beads you can thread onto this.”  And then it can be a counting exercise as well.
7. Lacing Cards: Use pre-punched cards with shoelaces or ribbons. You can punch the holes yourself into old birthday or Christmas cards.
8. Pipe Cleaners: Children can mould, twist and shape them, creating small figures, jewellery or abstract art.
9. Puzzles: Large piece puzzles are very good for fine motor skills. You can even make your own from cards.
10. Tape Art: Easy-to tear tape like masking tape can be fun.  Tearing and sticking are great fine motor skills for creating designs on paper.  You can use washi tape, but that gets a bit expensive.
11. Sorting Box: Carry a box with compartments with items like buttons, beads etc.  Children sort by colour, size or shape.
12. Clothes Pegs: Clipping paper – or anything else – together with pegs is another fine motor skill which also encourages the development of strength in the fingers.

MAKE EVERY POST A WINNER.

Research tells us how important it is to provide hands-on play experiences for preschoolers to foster motor skill development. Remember good old neuroplasticity.  As children engage in activities which foster motor skills, pathways are being laid down in the brain. This sets them up for whatever motor skills are required in everyday life. In addition, it provides a base to build on for any specialist motor skills they may wish to pursue later on.  Perhaps they may want to become a really good skate-boarder (gross motor).  Or play a musical instrument (fine motor, generally).

However, if they haven’t developed the basic skills at an early age, they may be restricted in their choices later in life.  And of course a child with good motor skills is more likely to be confident and have higher self-esteem than one with poor motor skills.  So it’s important to think outside the box and, rather than just letting them fill in idle moments on a screen, have your little box of tricks ready to provide fun and useful skills.

 

AND TALKING OF POSTS…

This is the last post I will be writing.  The book, Aa is for Alpacas, which was the real reason behind writing this blog, is now available only through Amazon.  This blog will remain up and running until November 2025, but with no new posts.  I would like to thank all subscribers, and I hope that people have been able to take something useful from the articles. My goal has always been to encourage parents and caregivers to do whatever they can to enhance their children’s development, and literacy in particular. Our children are our future.

I wish you all the very best in life.

Sue Carolane.