Bilateral Hand Use - Page 73 of 94

Coil Wrap Precision

Steps:

Use markers to color the craft sticks with different patterns or colors. This makes the finished product more visually appealing.
Place the colored craft stick flat on the table and hold it firmly with your helper hand to keep it from rolling (proximal stability).
Take one pipe cleaner. Use the fingertips of your dominant hand to tightly wrap the pipe cleaner around the craft stick, creating neat, tight coils.
Try to wrap the coil as close and tight as possible. When one pipe cleaner is finished, secure the end and wrap a new one until the stick is covered.
Open the container of small stickers. Use your precise pincer grasp to peel one sticker off the backing.
Challenge yourself to place the small sticker exactly onto one of the tight pipe cleaner coils. Use a firm press to secure it. Fill the coils with colorful stickers!

Safety Tip:
Ensure the child maintains good seated posture (feet flat on the floor) to support the fine motor movements. Check the ends of the pipe cleaners for sharp edges before starting.

Foil Comet Toss

Steps:

Tear a piece of aluminum foil off the roll. Use strong, bilateral hand movements to rip the resistant foil.
Use both hands and fingertips to crumple the foil into the smallest, tightest ball possible. This is your heavy ‘Comet.’
Repeat this process until you have 5 to 6 foil comets ready in your container.
The adult will use masking tape to hang the cardboard target from the ceiling or a doorway. Ensure it swings freely at the child’s chest level.
Challenge your child to stand still. Use the non-dominant hand to gently tap the cardboard, making it swing slowly.
Throw the foil comets one by one at the moving target. Practice grading the force of the throw to hit the center of the swinging target.

Safety Tip:
Ensure the aluminum foil is crumpled very tightly to eliminate any sharp, exposed edges. Supervise closely during throwing to ensure the child aims away from faces or breakable objects.

Twisty Cap Match

Steps:

Use markers to draw matching colors or simple patterns (like stripes or dots) onto the plastic bottle caps and the tops of the bottles.
Place one small button inside each empty plastic bottle. This gives auditory feedback when the cap is removed.
Challenge your child to hold the bottle firmly with their helper hand to keep it stable on the table.
Use the dominant hand to pick up the cap and twist it tightly onto the matching bottle. Focus on smooth, repetitive wrist twisting.
Once all caps are on, practice twisting them off quickly to ‘rescue’ the buttons inside. Put the buttons back in the container to start a new round.

Safety Tip:
Buttons are small items. Always supervise children closely during this activity to prevent a choking hazard.

Confetti Rainmakers

Steps:

Invite your child to select several colors of construction paper. Their first job is to use the hole puncher to create a big pile of ‘rain’ or confetti. Encourage them to use both hands to stabilize the paper and squeeze the puncher with strength (great for hand intrinsic muscles!).
Place the paper cup next to the confetti pile. Challenge your child to use the tongs to pick up each tiny piece of confetti and drop it into the cup. This requires slow, careful pincer control and focus!
When the cup is full, encourage your child to stand up and hold the cup high above their head. Then, they can gently tilt it to make the colorful ‘confetti rain’ fall down, providing visual and proprioceptive input before repeating the scooping process.

Safety Tip:
Ensure the hole puncher is used correctly and supervise closely to prevent pieces of confetti from being placed in the mouth, nose, or ears.

Foil River Rock Toss

Steps:

Tear off a large, square piece of aluminum foil (about 12 inches per side). Tearing this resistant material gives hands a great workout.
Use two hands to crumple the foil. Squeeze it intensely into the smallest, tightest ‘river rock’ ball possible.
Set up the target: Use masking tape to secure two small paper cups firmly inside the large plastic container.
Stand back slightly from the target container. Carefully toss the heavy foil rock, aiming for one of the narrow paper cup targets.
Repeat this process until you have used all the foil. Try tossing from different angles or distances for an extra challenge.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise children closely during this activity. Ensure the foil pieces are crumpled tightly into balls before handling to eliminate sharp edges. Remind the child to stay behind the toss line during play.