Cutting - Page 3 of 17

Taped String Snipping

Steps:

Adult Prep: Cut a piece of cardboard into a sturdy rectangle. Stretch several long pieces of yarn tightly across the cardboard and secure the ends firmly with masking tape.
Place the cardboard on a stable table. Challenge your child to hold the cardboard steady with their non-dominant hand to provide a stable base.
Using child-safe scissors, encourage your child to snip the taut yarn. They must close the scissors completely to cut through the resistant string.
Encourage a strong, full squeeze of the scissors to get the proprioceptive feedback from cutting the tight material.
Continue snipping all the yarn strands until the cardboard frame is clear. Count how many snips it took to complete the task.

Safety Tip:
Constant adult supervision is required. Ensure your child uses age-appropriate scissors safely. Collect all small yarn pieces immediately after the activity, as they are a choking hazard for children under five.

Card Flipper Launch

Steps:

Hold the index card firmly with your helper hand. Cut 3 short, narrow slits across the center of the card using scissors. Keep the slits straight and tight.
Take a craft stick (the lever). Carefully push the stick through all three narrow slits. The stick should bend the card into a slight spring shape.
Set the lever structure down flat on the table. Place a bead onto the end of the craft stick using your thumb and pointer finger (pincer control).
Hold the index card base steady with your helper hand. Use one finger from your dominant hand to press the craft stick down slightly. Quickly release it to launch the bead toward the container target.

Safety Tip:
Beads are very small and pose a significant choking hazard. Close adult supervision is required throughout the entire activity. Ensure all small materials are collected and stored safely after play.

Foam Sheet Architect

Steps:

Use the markers to draw several simple shapes (squares or triangles) onto the Foam Sheets.
Use child-safe scissors to cut out the foam shapes. Hold the foam steady with your helper hand while cutting along the lines.
Choose two cut foam shapes. Hold them together firmly at the edge where you want to connect them.
Pick up one Golf Ball Tee. Push the pointy end through the edges of both foam shapes to connect them firmly. The tee acts as a sturdy connector.
Continue connecting shapes with tees until you have built a free-standing structure, like a tower or cube. Try to make your structure as tall as possible!

Safety Tip:
Golf tees have sharp points. Always supervise the child closely. Ensure all tees are collected immediately after play.

Cardboard Link Structures

Steps:

Use markers to draw several long strips (about 1 inch wide) onto a piece of firm cardboard. Draw a few simple shapes like squares or circles, too.
Encourage your child to use child-safe scissors to carefully cut along the marker lines. Cutting the thick cardboard requires a strong grasp and finger effort!
Adult Step: Take the cardboard strips and shapes. Cut 2-3 short, narrow slits (about 1/2 inch deep) into the edges of each piece. Ensure the slits are slightly wider than the cardboard thickness.
Challenge your child to connect the cardboard pieces by sliding the slits into each other. The goal is to build a tall, unique, free-standing structure by linking all the pieces.
Encourage your child to use one hand to hold the structure steady while the other hand works to push and maneuver the joining pieces into place.

Safety Tip:
Adult supervision is required during all cutting phases. For children under 5, ensure all small cardboard scraps are immediately collected and discarded, as they may pose a choking hazard.

Noodle Chop Sort

Steps:

Use markers to color strips of paper that match the colors of your pool noodle. Tape these colored strips onto two separate baskets to create sorting targets.
Give your child the pool noodle and a pair of safety scissors. Encourage them to hold the noodle firmly with their ‘helper hand’ to keep it steady.
Challenge your child to cut the pool noodle into small, thin ‘coins’ or ‘slices.’ Remind them to use strong, full squeezes of the scissors.
Once the noodle is completely chopped, ask your child to look at the color targets. Sort the colorful foam coins into the matching color baskets.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise closely when using scissors. Use child-safe scissors appropriate for their hand size. Since the age range includes younger preschoolers, ensure that cut noodle pieces are not placed in the mouth, as they can pose a choking hazard if ingested.