Hey guys and dolls, how’s it going? I’m just sitting around thinking about beginning of the year
skills that are always beneficial to focus on, and that got me to thinking about fine motor skills and
how they are necessary in the classroom. Fine motor skills are an important part of student learning
that is often overlooked.
So, what are fine motor skills? Fine motor skills are when the small muscles of the hands, wrists and
fingers coordinate together in conjunction with the eyes. It affects the ability of your students to
write, color, cut, snap, button, buckle, zip, tie shoes, and the list could go on and on!
So today I’m here to share with you guys some fine motor activities that are easy to prep, simple
to implement in your classroom, and cheap to boot.
Shoestrings and Letter Beads
Shoestrings can be found pretty much anyplace, and I’ve found that it’s best to get shoestrings like
the ones in the pictures, rather than the average string like in your sneakers. Average strings are
rather wide, and students may not be able to move the beads as easily. These alphabet beads can
be found at your local Michael’s.
Fuzzy Sticks & Buttons
My kiddos really love this activity (and so do I, it’s a great stress reliever, lol)! Sometimes after
they have placed buttons onto the pipe cleaners, they love to twist the ends and make bracelets
and rings out of them! These supplies can easily be found at your local Wal-Mart.
Play Dough Mats
I think besides the sensory table, our word work center is a kid-approved center. They LOVE
playing with play dough! I like that it gives them continued fine motor practice throughout the
school year as we move towards mastery of the standards. You can find them here!