Skill: Bilateral Hand Use

The ability to use both hands together as a team. We use this for almost everything, like holding the paper with one hand while cutting with the other, or buttoning a shirt.

The Sticky Bottle Bead Roll

The Sticky Bottle Bead Roll

Steps:

  • Take an empty plastic bottle and make sure it is clean and dry.
  • Wrap a long piece of masking tape around the middle of the bottle.
  • Make sure the sticky side is facing out toward you.
  • Secure the ends of the tape with two smaller pieces of tape so it stays in place.
  • Scatter a handful of colorful beads inside a flat plastic container.
  • Show your child how to hold the bottle with both hands.
  • Ask them to roll the bottle over the beads until they stick to the tape.
  • Once the bottle is decorated, have them use their fingers to peel the beads off one by one.

Safety Tip:
CHOKING HAZARD: This activity uses beads which are small parts. Always supervise your toddler closely. Ensure they do not put beads or tape in their mouth.

Balloon Bead Balance Mission

Balloon Bead Balance Mission

Steps:

  • Blow up a balloon and tie it securely.
  • Place a bowl of beads and an empty basket on a stable table.
  • Ask your child to stand in front of the materials.
  • Have them rest the balloon on the flat palm of their non-dominant helper hand.
  • Use the tweezers in their other hand to pick up a single bead.
  • Carefully carry the bead and drop it into the basket while keeping the balloon balanced.
  • If the balloon falls, return the bead and try again from the start.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play. Small beads are a significant choking hazard. Ensure the balloon is handled carefully to avoid popping near the face.

The Pipe Cleaner Mirror Match

The Pipe Cleaner Mirror Match

Steps:

  • Tape a large sheet of butcher paper to the table.
  • Use a marker to draw a straight line down the middle of the paper.
  • Take one pipe cleaner and bend it into a simple shape like a zigzag.
  • Tape your shape onto the left side of the center line.
  • Give your child a second pipe cleaner of the same length.
  • Ask them to bend their pipe cleaner to match your shape exactly.
  • Have them tape their finished shape on the right side of the line.

Safety Tip:
Supervise your child to ensure the metal ends of the pipe cleaners are handled carefully to avoid pokes.

The Texture Match Mailbox

The Texture Match Mailbox

Steps:

  • Help your child cut three small rectangles from the felt, fabric, and foil.
  • Glue one of these texture samples next to a small slot you cut in the shoe box lid.
  • Cut several more small scraps of each material and put them in a pile.
  • Ask your child to feel a texture on the lid first.
  • Challenge them to find the matching scrap from the pile using their eyes and hands.
  • Once they find a match, have them push it through the correct slot!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child while they are using scissors. Ensure all material scraps are large enough to be handled safely and not placed in the mouth.

The Sticky Ribbon Rainbow Reach

The Sticky Ribbon Rainbow Reach

Steps:

  • Tape a large piece of cardboard vertically to a wall at your child’s eye level.
  • Cut five strips of colorful ribbon, each about six inches long.
  • Use masking tape to stick only the top end of each ribbon to the far left side of the cardboard.
  • Place five small pieces of tape, sticky side out, on the far right side of the cardboard.
  • Have your child stand in the center of the board.
  • Ask them to reach across with their right hand to grab a ribbon from the left.
  • They must pull it across and stick it to the matching tape on the right!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play to ensure the ribbon and tape are handled safely.