Did you know that the simple activity of paper tearing has so many benefits for your child? When you tear paper you are actually strengthening hand-eye coordination as well as increasing hand strength. Tearing paper is an easy way to encourage fingers to be in a pincer grasp which is essential for writing with a …
Have you ever wanted to learn to juggle? Check out our How to Juggle Step-by-Step Video Tutorial below. Then, entertain your family and friends with your new skills. This is an excerpt from my new book, Adventure Girls. In the chapter, “Clown Around” it includes juggling, magic tricks, and how to make balloon …
My one year old and I always love going to the playground. He loves to explore, climb, swing and slide with me close by making sure he’s safe. Today while we were getting ready to go he was carrying around his ball and I thought how much fun a ball would be at the playground! …
Motor skills are motions carried out when the brain, nervous system, and muscles work together. Fine motor skills are small muscle movements, such as grabbing something with your thumb and forefinger. Gross motor skills are bigger movements that use the bigger muscles such as running and jumping. (Resource: babycenter.com) So often we focus on ways …
Here’s a fun way to clean up for your preschooler or toddler: Do you have a hard time getting your children to pick up toys and clean up? I DO! Mix it up and make it fun like we did with a pair of spaghetti tongs. Challenge your child to pick up as many toys …
B had fun pouring the colored rice into different containers using a funnel and a scoop! It was the perfect time to talk about more and less, full and empty, and half full.
Bored? Try the Don’t Touch the Carpet Challenge! I gave B two pieces of paper and challenged him to get to the basketball hoop without touching the carpet. I showed him how to step to the next paper and transfer the other paper to the front. The motor skills used to balance, bend, and move …
To be honest, I never thought about buying a barrel of monkeys for B. Grandma introduced him to his first barrel and I thought it was a big mess for one little game. Fast forward 3 months and I’m so happy that we had those monkeys! B came up with so many different ways to use them. …
Here’s a great activity for your toddler or preschooler using a cardboard shape and rubber bands. It is great for strengthening finger and hand muscles which is important for beginning writers. Cut a star out of sturdy cardboard and give your child several rubber bands to stretch over it. This is a great activity for motor …
Sweeping Beans is a fun motor skills activity for your toddler or preschooler! I’ve seen this activity online in quite a few places and finally found the broom and dust pan for B at the Target dollar spot. I taped a piece of paper onto his table (you could also do this on the floor …
This Velcro Catching Gloves project was featured on Make and Takes and when I saw it I just knew I had to give it a try! What you need: Pair of cheap winter gloves ($1) Ball (set of 4 for $1 at Dollar Tree) Sticky Velcro Circles ($2ish) All you have to do is stick …
How cool is this bean funnel and sensory box made out of recycled containers and large thumbtacks!? I read about this on Little Hands, Big Work. My husband and B put this together and there were HOURS of fun to be had! Kids of all ages have walked into the playroom to see this and …