Skill: Visual Motor

How the eyes and hands work together as a team. This is essential for tasks where movement is guided by vision, like catching a ball, cutting on a line, or staying within the lines when coloring.

The Spiky Paper Roll Tower

The Spiky Paper Roll Tower

Steps:

  • Use your markers to draw several colorful dots on an empty paper roll.
  • Help your child use the hole puncher to click a hole through every dot.
  • Use masking tape to stick the bottom of the paper roll to a flat cardboard base.
  • Ask your child to hold the base steady with their helper hand.
  • Use the other hand to slide a straw through one hole and out a hole on the other side.
  • Continue until the paper roll looks like a spiky tower full of straws.
  • Use a pincer grasp to carefully place one bead on the end of every straw!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play. Small beads and cut straw pieces are choking hazards. Keep all materials away from the mouth.

The Metal Button Spire

The Metal Button Spire

Steps:

  • Use your pencil to poke a hole in the center of a sturdy cardboard square.
  • Push a long bolt through the hole so the threads point straight up.
  • Place a button onto the bolt so it rests flat on the cardboard.
  • Pick up a nut and twist it onto the bolt using your fingertips.
  • Spin the nut all the way down until it touches the button.
  • Add another button and then twist on a second nut.
  • Continue stacking buttons and nuts to build a tall, colorful spire!
  • Use your non-dominant hand to hold the cardboard base steady.

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play. Nuts and bolts are small parts that can be a choking hazard. Ensure all materials are used safely.

The Shiny Foil Crown Crimp

The Shiny Foil Crown Crimp

Steps:

  • Help your child use scissors to cut a long, wide strip of cardboard.
  • Use the markers to draw colorful gems and patterns on the strip.
  • Tape the ends of the cardboard together to make a headband that fits your child.
  • Ask your child to tear several small squares of aluminum foil using both hands.
  • Show them how to fold a foil square over the top rim of the crown.
  • Challenge your child to use their pinching fingers to squeeze the foil until it stays flat.
  • Continue crimping foil all the way around the crown to make it look like silver jewels!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child while they are using scissors to cut the cardboard.

The Pipe Cleaner Bottle Hook

The Pipe Cleaner Bottle Hook

Steps:

  • Place an empty plastic bottle on a stable table.
  • Have your child use their pinching fingers to drop ten colorful beads into the bottle.
  • Give them a pipe cleaner and help them bend the tip into a small hook.
  • Ask your child to hold the bottle steady with their non-dominant helper hand.
  • Challenge them to lower the hook into the bottle and catch a bead.
  • Carefully pull the hooked bead all the way out through the narrow opening!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play. Small beads are a choking hazard and should be kept away from mouths.

The Silver Foil Path Trace

The Silver Foil Path Trace

Steps:

  • Glue a sheet of aluminium foil onto a piece of cardboard.
  • Use your hands to smooth the foil until it is very flat.
  • Use a bright marker to draw a curvy path across the foil.
  • Ask your child to pick up a pom-pom using their pinching fingers.
  • Challenge them to slide the pom-pom slowly along the drawn path.
  • Try drawing a zigzag or a circle to make it harder!

Safety Tip:
Always supervise your child during play. Small pom-poms can be a choking hazard. Ensure the edges of the foil are tucked safely behind the cardboard to prevent any sharp edges.