Now that B is walking and occasionally running more confidently,
it's time to refocus on his fine motor skills. I've noticed that boys
tend to be slower than girls in this age group to master certain tasks... B
expresses interest in doing these things, but when he’s stuck, he gets frustrated
quite easily and just swipes or throws it away. Perhaps we can
incorporate more intentional fine motor skill practice throughout the day,
either through daily routines or short “games."
Some ideas:
1) Filling up, dumping out and scooping:
Prepare for this stage by setting up play areas and
offering manageable activities. Taking blocks out of a large box, pegs out of a
pegboard, toys out of a trunk, and sturdy puzzle pieces out of a puzzle. Once
he has the "taking out" step down, it's time for the "putting
in" step. Some of the above tasks can be reversed (although you may not be
able to generate much enthusiasm for putting toys away) and will flex your
child's visual and mental muscles as well as fine motor skills. For a
follow-up, encourage your little one to try a more challenging feat, such as
dropping "O" cereal bits or beans into a smaller container/with a
slightly narrowed neck, or using a shape-sorter. This is the precursor to self feeding. Use a
deep, short spoon that easily fits in a tot's hand. Practice with yogurt,
cereal or beans when there's time (and energy) to clean up. Be prepared
to help a little (or a lot....)
2) Dressing and undressing
Putting things on and taking them off is a toddler
delight. Dressing and undressing — himself or a toy — provides a host of
opportunities for him to practice his finger and hand
coordination. Tiny doll clothes are too intricate but big capes
or ponchos for his teddy bears, felt boards with people shapes and changeable
outfits are perfect. Reusable stickers can also fascinate, though very
small ones are tough for little fingers to manage. Provide a big box of
dress-up clothes that are easy to manage — Dad's old coat and shoes, your old
scarves, and hats galore. When it comes to dressing himself for
the day, your toddler will do best with pants that have elastic waists, pull-on
tops, and Velcro-fastening shoes to minimize morning struggles. Be sure to
introduce new challenges — a single large button or a big snap — one at a time.
3) Drawing and scribbling
Sometime between the ages of 12 and 18 months, your
toddler will probably attempt to "write" by making marks on paper or
with crayons, and sometime between 18 and 24 months she may surprise you by
drawing vertical and horizontal lines and perhaps a circle. Set up your
budding artist with big sheets of thick paper taped to the table. Thick, sturdy
crayons or washable pens in a few primary colors (so as not to overwhelm) are a
good choice. Chunky sidewalk chalk to use outdoors, paper pinned to an
easel instead of a flat surface, or soap crayons in the tub, finger-painting
and printing (hand- and footprints, brush leaves, acorns, carrot-tops, or
flower petals with paint to use as homemade stamps)
4) Stacking, sorting and stringing
From carefully balancing one block on top of another to
placing colored rings on a pole, stacking (and knocking down, of course) is a
toddler tradition. Let your child experiment with blocks of different
sizes, shapes, and colors, and offer a variety of other materials for building
and manipulating. Though ABCs and 1-2-3s games are a ways off, your toddler can
sort refrigerator alphabet magnets by color or size or string beads with
plastic snap-together beads. Once he’s mastered those, offer a thick shoelace
and a piece of felt with holes cut in it or a sturdy string and big wooden
beads, colored pasta shapes or fruit rings.
5) Poking and pinching
Toddlers are sensualists above all else — they love to
smell, taste, and touch. Nontoxic modeling clay invites hand and finger
movement as your child rolls, shapes, punches, and molds the material to her
liking. A few simple tools, such as a lightweight rolling pin and some plastic
cookie cutters, stretch this activity out longer. The softer the dough,
the easier it is for small hands to shape. Real edible dough is, of course, the
ultimate treat or “gak” - the gooey preschool favorite made from equal parts
white glue (or flour, colored with food colouring) and water , which kids just
love to squish and squeeze. If there's opportunity outside, a mud pie
kitchen or a sandcastle construction zone creates opportunities to use those
same manipulative skills.
