Button The Shapes
- Play time:
- 10 to 15 minutes
- Setup:
- 20 minutes
- Where:
- Table

Why it helps
In this activity, the child works on ADL (Activities of Daily Living) by promoting buttoning and visual perception skills. Choking risk: buttons can be a choking hazard. Stay within arm's reach, and keep them away from children who still put things in their mouths.
For this activity, you will first need to create the button container using plastic containers with lids. Use the scissors to pierce a hole in the lid.
Take one button and insert a 3-inch pipe cleaner through 2 of the button holes.
Insert each edge of the pipe cleaner through the lid hole that you pierced and twist the 2 edges together on the bottom of the lid. This will hold the button in place on the lid.
Close the container with the lid so the button is at the top of the container.
Using a marker, mark a shape on the container.
Cut out pieces of felt in the same shapes that you marked the containers with. You can also use fabric for this.
Using the scissors, cut holes in the middle of each shape.
Provide the child with the button containers and the felt shapes. Ask the child to sort the felt pieces and button them on the right container marked with the matching shape.
For grading, you can use different sized buttons or you can also use one container with no marked shape and have the child follow a pattern from a visual model (i.e. button a circle, a triangle, and a rectangle in a repeated order).
Need personalized support?
While these activities are great for home practice, nothing replaces the guidance of a licensed therapist. If you are in Irvine, CA or the Orange County area and have concerns about your child's Activities of daily living (ADL), we invite you to connect with us.
Contact Tumble N' Dots Therapy →These activities are for home practice and don't replace the guidance of a licensed therapist.





