Proprioception - Page 31 of 43

Cactus Needle Push

Steps:

Press the Theraputty firmly into the bottom of the container. This creates a stable, resistant ‘desert floor’ for your cactus garden.
Break the dry spaghetti into short, 2-inch pieces. Breaking the spaghetti gives the hands extra feedback and motor planning practice.
Hold the container steady with your helper hand. Use your dominant hand to pick up one spaghetti piece (a ‘needle’).
Push the needle straight down into the putty. Encourage a strong, controlled push to insert it without breaking it.
Plant many needles close together to make a spiky cactus texture. Fill the entire putty surface!
Select a small pom-pom using your precise pincer grasp. Carefully place the pom-pom onto the top of a spaghetti needle to create a colorful ‘cactus flower’.

Safety Tip:
Spaghetti pieces are sharp when broken. Always supervise closely. Uncooked spaghetti, small pom-poms, and putty are choking hazards for children who still place objects in their mouths. Ensure all materials are collected immediately after play.

Water Wipe Tracing

Steps:

Draw 3-4 large shapes (circle, square, triangle) on the chalkboard or vertical board using chalk or a marker.
Fill the spray bottle with water. Ensure the nozzle is set to stream, not mist, to provide resistance.
Challenge your child to hold the bottle with both hands first, then switch to one hand. Focus on using strong fingers to squeeze the trigger.
Aim the water stream at the drawn shapes. Spray directly onto the lines, “erasing” them by following the path.
Encourage strong, controlled squeezes to strengthen the hand muscles.

Safety Tip:
Supervise the activity closely to ensure water is not sprayed toward faces. Ensure the child stands stably while reaching for the vertical surface.

Pocket Post Office

Steps:

Roll the playdough into a thick, flat disc. Press it firmly into the bottom of the plastic container to create a stable base.
Stand 6 to 8 craft sticks up vertically by pushing them deep into the playdough base. Arrange the sticks close together to create narrow ‘pockets’ between them (these are the mail slots).
Put the pom-poms (the ‘mail’) into a small bowl and place them next to the container.
Use your thumb and pointer finger (pincer grasp) or a pair of tongs to pick up one piece of mail at a time.
Hold the container steady with your helper hand. Carefully aim the mail into one of the narrow pockets between the sticks.
Use a strong, controlled push to send the mail deep into the playdough pocket. Repeat this until all the pockets are full!

Safety Tip:
Pom-poms and craft sticks are small objects. Maintain constant adult supervision during this activity, as these materials pose a choking hazard for children under five.

Fence Post Push

Steps:

Adult Prep: Use the scissors to cut several narrow, short slots (about 1-inch long) across the surface of the cardboard. Keep the slots tight to add resistance.
Set up the area by standing the cardboard vertically on a table. Place the craft sticks in the container next to the cardboard barrier.
Show your child how to use their ‘helper hand’ to hold and stabilize the cardboard fence, keeping it perfectly steady.
Using the working hand, pick up one craft stick at a time. Aim the stick at a slot and use a strong, controlled push to insert it through the cardboard.
Encourage your child to continue inserting sticks until the entire cardboard is full of colorful fence posts. Try pushing sticks into slots placed at different heights.

Safety Tip:
Adult supervision is required during the preparation phase when using scissors. Ensure the child sits stably at the table while performing the pushing action.

The Sticky Spider Crawl Maze

Set up a ‘web’ area by placing two large boxes or firm pillows a few feet apart. Use masking tape to string yarn back and forth between the two structures, creating a low, crisscrossing maze pattern (the sticky spider web).

The goal is to cross from one side to the other. You can grade the activity up and down by spacing the spider webs.