Tempera Paint - OTPlan

Wet Cardboard Q-Tip Punch

OTPlan — Mon, 26 Jan 2026 14:59:25 +0000

This activity is a fun way to strengthen small hand muscles. Pushing the Q-Tip against the damp, thick cardboard provides excellent proprioceptive feedback. This heavy work input helps prepare hands for future complex tasks like writing and using scissors. It naturally encourages finger isolation by requiring a precise pincer grip on the Q-Tip. Your child must aim carefully at a small target. This improves visual motor integration and fine motor precision. Holding the cardboard steady with the helper hand develops proximal stability and bilateral coordination.

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Sensory Squeeze Lines

OTPlan — Mon, 04 Aug 2025 21:10:48 +0000

This activity gives your child deep pressure input (proprioception) in their hands while strengthening their intrinsic muscles. Squeezing the thick paint mixture requires heavy work. This heavy work is very calming for the nervous system and helps improve focus. The goal is to control the paint flow precisely to trace lines. This develops the fine motor control and precise force needed for writing and drawing later on. It’s a fun way to improve hand endurance and bilateral coordination.

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Roller Path Painting

OTPlan — Sun, 08 Jun 2025 22:28:30 +0000

This activity focuses on improving fine motor control and the complex movements of the wrist and forearm. For preschoolers, developing forearm rotation (pronation and supination) is crucial for self-care skills like pouring and dressing. Using the small paper roll as a 'roller' encourages your child to stabilize their hand while moving their wrist with control. This is important for preparing their hands for drawing and writing tasks. It also works on eye-hand coordination to keep the roller inside the marked path.

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Giant Sponge Squish Art

OTPlan — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 20:49:53 +0000

This heavy work activity provides deep proprioceptive input to the joints while encouraging the use of both hands together. It is great for building the core and shoulder stability needed for future writing and fine motor tasks.

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Pizza Party

Danielle Noriega — Fri, 15 May 2020 14:33:44 +0000

This activity promotes fine motor skills and addresses tactile defensiveness.

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Fingerprint Turkey

OTPlan — Wed, 13 Nov 2019 13:25:02 +0000

This activity provides tactile input and works on finger isolation by creating a picture of a turkey using the child's fingerprints.

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Catch the Turkey

OTPlan — Sun, 10 Nov 2019 14:16:45 +0000

This Thanksgiving activity helps promote pincer grasp and works on cutting skills as well as hand strengthening as the child pinches the clothespins and places them as feathers on the turkey's body.

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Squeeze this Puffy Paint

OTPlan — Tue, 05 Nov 2019 20:36:40 +0000

This activity helps in strengthening the finger muscles.

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Acorn Stamper

OTPlan — Wed, 14 Aug 2019 17:44:26 +0000

This activity promotes pincer grasp and visual motor skills by creating and decorating an acorn shape.

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Paper Roll Caterpillar

OTPlan — Sat, 13 Jul 2019 23:28:34 +0000

Promote cutting skills, pincer grasp, bilateral hand use, and imagination by creating a caterpillar. Each little creature you make can be unique depending on how long you make it, the colors you use and how the caterpillar is decorated.

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