Cutting - Page 7 of 17

Make a Puzzle

Hand the child a xeroxed page of a holiday design (with multiple items to color) or draw a picture on the paper/construction paper.

Use the ruler to draw horizontal and vertical lines for the child to cut (number of pieces depends on the child’s age and skills).

You can also draw curved or wiggly lines depending on your child’s cutting abilities.

Have the child follow directions based on skill level.

Start with simple directions and progress to harder instructions if appropriate.

Once all items are colored, have the child cut across the lines.

Once cut, the child should reassemble the puzzle.

Place the pieces in a ziplock bag to take home if desired.

Body Shape

Take one of your clothespins and paint it with colors. This will be the butterfly body.

Wings

To make the wings, take some colored construction paper and fold it in half.

Draw a pair of wings on the folded side of the paper, and cut around them using the scissors.

Unfold the wings and you will have two sets that are exactly the same.

Draw colorful lines and patterns over the wings.

Assemble Everything Together

Pinch open the clothes peg and glue the wings onto the top prong.

It is best to clip the clothes peg onto something so that it doesn’t get glued shut.

Decorate the body of the butterfly with your buttons and beads, and stick the googly eyes onto the top of the peg.

Paper Chain

Setup: On several different colors of construction paper, use a thick marker to draw straight lines spaced about 1 to 1.5 inches apart across the width of the paper.

Steps:

Practice Scissor Grasp: Hand your child child-safe scissors. Encourage them to hold the scissors with their “thumb up” toward the ceiling.
Cut the Strips: Ask your child to cut along the thick marker lines you drew. Remind them to hold the paper steady with their “helper hand” while their cutting hand moves the scissors.
Make the First Loop: Take one cut strip. Show your child how to place a small dot or swipe of glue on one end of the strip. Curl the strip around to meet the glued end, pressing firmly to create your first circle.
Connect the Chain: Take a new strip of a different color. Thread this new strip through the center of your first completed circle loop.
Glue and Repeat: Once the new strip is threaded through, glue its ends together to lock it into the chain. Continue this process—thread, then glue—until all the strips are used!

Cherry Grasp

For this activity, you can use small game pieces like the cherry pieces from Hi Ho Cherry O, Monopoly pieces, and other small objects.

The objective of the board game is to be the first to put all of your cherries in the bucket.

Provide each player with tweezers.

Following the rules of the game, instruct each player to pick up the cherries using their tweezers and placing them into their bucket.

Depending upon the tweezers (or small tongs) used, you may instruct the child to reach for the stem rather than the cherry itself.

This game can be played by up to 4 children and social skills can be addressed while playing.

Acorn Stamper

Draw an acorn on the construction paper (see images for example) or you can let the child trace an acorn stencil to promote fine motor control and visual-motor skills.

Let the child cut the acorn shape using scissors.

Using a piece of small sponge instruct the child to pinch it and dip it into the paint then stamp and paint the bottom part of the acorn cut out. You can also use q-tips or cotton balls to paint.

Encourage the child to fill in the entire bottom part of the acorn.

Have the child spread glue on the top part of the acorn.

Provide the child with a few dry leaves. Instruct the child to crumble the leaves inside the palm of his hand and then spread them on the glue. This will promote finger strength and finger translation.

You may also use beans to cover the top area of the acorn.

Skill: Cutting