fine motor skills

Snowman Craft for Occupational Therapy

by
snowman collage using junk mail

Helping kids develop fine motor skills doesn’t require a bunch of fancy therapy equipment or carefully selected developmental toys. Here, I’ll show you how to use junk mail to help kids improve motor skills. This snowman collage is a winter craft that kids can use to work on areas like scissor skills, eye-hand coordination, visual motor skills, and hand strength!

You’ll also want to check out our other snowman crafts too. It’s a fun indoor activity for winter when the kids need something different to do. Grab that junk mail, we’re going to build a snowman!

A Fun and Easy Snowman Craft for Preschoolers and Toddlers

This snowman craft is as simple as it gets! It’s packed with developmental benefits. Using junk mail, old magazines, or recycled paper to rip and glue inside a snowman outline makes it the perfect easy snowman craft for young children.

I love using this snowman craft in occupational therapy. It’s a great Winter activity for kids because you can target several skill areas.

Whether you’re in a classroom, therapy session, or at home with toddlers, this no-prep activity can be adapted for various ages and skill levels. Just draw or print a snowman outline and let the tearing and gluing begin!

Supports Fine Motor Skills Through Paper Tearing and Gluing

Tearing paper works on small hand muscles, particularly the intrinsic muscles of the hands and fingers, which are essential for pencil grasp, cutting, and functional hand use. This snowman fine motor craft also promotes bilateral coordination. Kids use one hand to hold the paper and the other to rip it. The gluing portion supports hand-eye coordination and precision. These are foundational skills for writing, buttoning, and scissor use.

Why This is a Great Snowman Craft for Preschoolers and Toddlers

Preschoolers benefit from activities that are both simple and meaningful. This snowman craft for preschoolers offers a tactile, sensory-rich experience using familiar materials.

The tearing action is developmentally appropriate for toddlers, too, who may not yet have the skills for cutting but can participate in a creative process. For toddlers, you can provide pre-ripped paper chunks, while preschoolers can tear independently. It’s also a great way to reinforce body part vocabulary (“Let’s glue paper onto the snowman’s belly!”), introduce sequencing (first tear, then glue), and encourage attention span.

Snowman Crafts That Build School Readiness

Crafts like this are more than just cute, they support kindergarten readiness. The fine motor development, attention to task, visual-motor integration, and sequencing involved in completing this snowman all build the skills kids need for success in early childhood education.

For therapists, it’s an ideal winter-themed craft that supports multiple goal areas while still being fun and seasonal.

Extend the Snowman Craft idea

For added engagement, you can turn this into a math or handwriting activity by adding a number to each snowman and having kids glue that many pieces of paper.

Or, use a black marker to have kids write their names, a winter word, or a letter of the week on the snowman’s hat. Encourage creativity by offering different paper textures, colors, or even letting kids add googly eyes, cotton ball “snow,” or stickers to decorate their snowman.

Fine motor snowman collage using junk mail to help kids with motor skills and visual motor skills.

Snowman Collage Craft

We got a bunch of junk mail today with random neighborhood coupons inside… When my kids were younger, they loved to use scissors to practice cutting. And, actually, using the coupons found in junk mail to practice scissor skills, is actually a very functional and easy way to practice cutting along lines.

Junk mail is easily accessible and a material found in most homes. So, why not use it to help kids develop fine motor skills?

Junk Mail Craft

While we used junk mail to create a snowman collage, this craft technique can be used for any shape or theme.

Kids can use junk mail to work on snipping paper with scissors, eye-hand coordination, and visual motor skills. Try these strategies using junk mail:

  • Work on snipping along the edges of paper to create a fringe- This is a great bilateral coordination activity for preschool aged children and new scissor users.
  • Work on cutting along lines or coupons for early scissor skills- Cutting coupons or basic shapes is an early scissor skill activity. Junk mail often times includes flyers that are made from cardstock or heavy materials, as well as thinner materials, so it’s easy to progress through a graded activity to meet the needs of all levels of kids.
  • Cut out pictures- Use junk mail to cut out pictures or shapes. This is a nice way to work on simple to complex cutting skills. Progress from easy or basic shapes to more complex shapes.

For more scissor skills activities and how to progress along various grades, check out these Scissor Skills Crash Course.

To further along from basic scissor skills, use the junk mail materials to create a collage craft. You could use the steps below to make any shape or theme, making it a great addition to weekly therapy themes or preschool themes.

Snowman Collage

For our snowman craft, I first drew a snowman shape onto blue paper. This part could be graded as well. Use a larger shape for younger children or make a smaller shape for addressing more refined skills and precision.

Next, ask your child to cut out blue and white pieces of junk mail. This is where the craft gets open-ended. You can let kids snip random shapes, or you could request that they cut all squares. I love that this scissor skills craft fits with all levels and needs.

When kids are sorting through a stack of junk mail for specific colors, they are developing a variety of skill areas:

  • Eye-hand coordination
  • Visual scanning
  • Finger isolation (page turning)
  • Precision and refined grasp (manipulating one page at a time)
  • Visual attention and visual memory

Next, you will need squeeze glue from a bottle. As a pediatric occupational therapist, I love the use of a squeeze glue bottle over a glue stick for so many reasons. By using a squeeze glue bottle, kids are building refined use of skill areas:

  • Refined grasp
  • Hand strength
  • Eye-hand coordination
  • Arch strength
  • Open thumb web-space
  • Visual motor skills

You can focus on certain areas with use of a squeeze glue bottle by asking kids to place glue onto specific spots. Just use a marker to dot throughout the shape. Kids can then place glue dots on those specific spots.

If working with glue bottles is a helpful activity for the children you serve, you will love the Glue Spots Exercises in the Winter Fine Motor Kit.

Next, kids can place their junk mail pieces onto the glue and within the collage area to create the snowman.

Snowman collage craft using junk mail is a nice way to help kids work on fine motor skills using materials found in the home.
Use junk mail and squeeze glue bottle to help kids with fine motor skills using junk mail.

Ask kids to line up strait and curved edges along the curved lines of the snowman. This is a great way to work on visual motor skills.

To grade this activity to make it easier, make the lines of the snowman thicker with a black marker.

Cute junk mail collage snowman for preschoolers

You can see that we completed this craft on the floor, making it a shoulder strengthening activity as well.

Make a junk mail snowman craft to help kids with scissor skills and fine motor skills.

  That’s a pretty cute snowman…and great for practicing those snipping skills!

Want more ways to boost fine motor skills with a snowman theme or winter theme? The Winter Fine Motor Kit is on sale now!

winter fine motor kit

This print-and-go winter fine motor kit includes no-prep fine motor activities to help kids develop functional grasp, dexterity, strength, and endurance. Use fun, winter-themed, fine motor activities so you can help children develop strong fine motor skills in a digital world.

More than ever, kids need the tools to help them build essential fine motor skills so they develop strong and dexterous hands so they can learn, hold & write with a pencil, and play.

This 100 page no-prep packet includes everything you need to guide fine motor skills in face-to-face AND virtual learning. Includes winter themed activities for hand strength, pinch and grip, dexterity, eye-hand coordination, bilateral coordination, endurance, finger isolation, and more. 

Click here to grab the Winter Fine Motor Kit!

Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

 
 
 

Fall Fine Motor Worksheets

by
Fall fine motor worksheets

If working on developing fine motor skills this Fall is something you’re focusing on, these Fall fine motor worksheets are the way to go. Add these printable clip cards use clothes pins or paper clips to develop hand and finger dexterity and grip and pinch strength to a Fall theme. Use these Fall leaves clip cards to several of our favorite Fall fine motor activities for developing hand strength, pinch, grip, and dexterity in the hands.

You’ll love to add these Fall worksheets to more Fall fine motor activities! This is one of our favorite Fall occupational therapy activities.

Free Fall fine motor worksheets for developing fine motor strength with a Fall leaves theme.

Fall Fine Motor Worksheets

These fall fine motor worksheets are clip cards that combine a print and play activity.

It’s easy to set up this Fall fine motor worksheet into an interactive, and hands-on fine motor activity:

  1. Just print out the Fall leaves worksheets.
  2. Then laminate or use as a paper form. Cut out each circle.
  3. Then, kids can clip clothes pins or paper clips onto each circle as they count and match clips to the Fall leaves on the cards.

Fall Clip Cards for Fine Motor Development

Fall clip cards are a seasonal and engaging way to build essential fine motor skills in young children. These hands-on tools typically feature colorful autumn-themed images—like pumpkins, leaves, or acorns—and require children to clip a clothespin to the correct answer or matching image. This simple action offers big benefits, especially for developing the small muscles of the hands that are needed for tasks like handwriting, buttoning, and using scissors.

Using clip cards targets pincer grasp, which strengthens the muscles between the thumb and index finger. This grasp is essential for pencil control and other precision-based movements. In addition to hand strength, clip cards promote hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination (using both hands together), and visual scanning, all of which are important foundational skills for classroom success.

The fall theme adds an extra layer of excitement and relevance, especially for preschoolers and early elementary students. Kids can work on matching letters, numbers, shapes, or even simple math problems, all while building motor skills in a fun, low-prep way. Clip cards can be used in centers, therapy sessions, or at home, making them a versatile tool for both educators and therapists during the autumn season.

Why Use Fall Fine Motor Tasks Like this one?

This activity is a powerful hands-on activity because it builds skills in many areas. Clipping clothes pins to paper or cards like this Fall themed activity develops several skill areas:

Plus, pinching clothes pins onto paper is a tool to improve several areas:

  • tone in the hands/arch development
  • increase stability in the thumb and fingers
  • develop and define arches of the hands
  • improve precision with in-hand manipulation
  • improve endurance in hand strength
  • address hand separation into a fine motor side and a power side
  • Separation of the two sides of the hand allow for more precise use of the thumb. Hand separation starts when a baby bears weight through their arm and ulnar side of the hand while carrying a toy in the radial side. This simple activity developmentally lengthens the muscles of the ulnar side.
  • Intrinsic strength-The intrinsic muscles are the muscles in the hand that define the arches of the hands, bend the knuckles, and oppose with the thumbs.
  • Arch development: Arch support in the hand is related closely to the separation of the sides of the hand. Refinement of fine motor skills in the hand (the radial side) happens when the power half (the ulnar side) is stabilized.

When kids hold the circle card, they use their non-dominant hand to hold the card, and can use their dominant hand to clip clothes pins onto the cards. Kids can count the number of leaves on each card and attach the same number of clothes pins.

It’s a great activity that is fun and motivating without being rote finger strengthening exercises.

A functional fine motor grasp and manipulation of objects is more accurate when the ring and pinky fingers are flexed (bent) into the palm. This positioning stabilizes the MCP arch and allows for control of the pointer and middle fingers.

You can use this as an intervention when working on manual dexterity goals, too.

This repeated clipping task combines heavy work proprioceptive input through the hands and develops refined strengthening of the arches of the hands. All of this occurs while children count and combine fine motor skills with math.

It’s a great Fall preschool activity or a Fall kindergarten math center where kids are combining math with fine motor skills…and a Fall theme!

Be sure to find out more information on development and when this type of activity is appropriate by reading about fine motor milestones.

Free Fall Worksheets

Want to add these Fall fine motor worksheet clip cards to your therapy toolbox? Enter your email address into the form below. You’ll receive these fine motor math worksheets in your inbox!

Fall Fine Motor Clip Cards

    We respect your privacy. Unsubscribe at anytime.
    Built with ConvertKit

    Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

    Jack Be Nimble Nursery Rhyme Craft

    by
    Fine motor skills nursery rhyme craft. child squeezing a glue bottle and picture of cut shapes and torn tissue paper.

    Looking for a fun way to bring movement into your circle time? This Jack Be Nimble craft pairs perfectly with nursery rhyme activities that get kids up and moving! Traditional rhymes like this one offer the perfect opportunity to build coordination, balance, and listening skills through gross motor rhymes. Add in a simple hands-on kids crafts, and you’ve got a meaningful activity that supports early learning in a playful way. Whether you’re working with a preschool class or doing OT sessions, this circle time movement idea brings the classic rhyme to life with jumping, crafting, and lots of giggles.

    Fine motor skills nursery rhyme craft. child squeezing a glue bottle and picture of cut shapes and torn tissue paper.

    Today’s craft is a Jack Be Nimble craft based on the nursery rhyme, Jack be nimble, Jack be quick. If you are looking for an easy nursery rhyme crafts based on development, this craft supports fine motor skills and scissor skills.

    Jack Be Nimble Craft

    I love this Jack be Nimble craft because it has so many components that are the building blocks for developing motor skills in kids. You’ll find:

    • Cutting simple shapes
    • Cutting straight lines and curved lines
    • Tearing paper
    • Crumbling paper
    • Gluing the craft pieces in order (direction following)

    This craft is one of those kids crafts that is project based, but there are components that can be created by the child with a process-based format. You can have the child add their own spin on things and offer art and craft materials and just let the process go.

     
    The Nursery Rhyme craft and activities series is in full swing and we’ve had some great ideas shared for some classic nursery rhyme favorites.  
     
    Today’s kids craft is one of our favorite Nursery Rhymes.  We’ve loved this short little rhyme since we started book babies at the library years back.
     
    It is a fun rhyme to recite and always brings a smile to my kids’ faces. 
     
    Jack be nimble
    Jack be quick
    Jack jump over the candlestick.

     

     
    Jack Be Nimble Jack Be Quick, Jack jumped over the candle stick craft for nursery rhyme loving toddlers and preschoolers.
     
     

    Jack Be Nimble Jack Be Quick Craft for Toddlers and Preschoolers

    This post contains affiliate links for your convenience.
     

     

    To make a Jack Be Nimble craft, you’ll need:

    • cardstock in white, another color (we used blue) and a background sheet (we used green)
    • glue
    • tissue paper (in red, yellow, and orange)

    This craft is a nice one because you can work on cutting simple shapes. Here is a scissor skills crash course that talks about how to modify cutting tasks to make it easier or harder for kids at different skill levels.

    Use Squeeze Glue Bottles Instead of Glue Sticks 

    Here’s an occupational therapy fine motor tip: Use squeeze glue bottles for crafts. This is a strengthening tool that also works on graded precision, wrist stability, bilateral coordination, crossing midline, and visual motor skills! 

    tip for using glue bottles to work on hand strength

    These are skills that kids need for a wider variety of functional tasks and the squeeze glue bottle builds these skills with instant feedback. 

    Squeeze too hard and too much glue comes out of the glue bottle. Squeeze too softly and you won’t get any glue. The nice thing is you can modify the amount of pressure needed by opening or closing the cap slightly. 

    Wrist stability with fine motor tasks like using scissors and writing is huge. That’s why I love using the glue bottle task as a way to work on this. If the wrists are bent, or flexed when squeezing the glue bottle, the child won’t have stability and strength. It’s easy to point out this concept to them while they are using the glue bottle because it’s right there in front of them with both hands together on the glue bottle. 

    This is a great way to make the nursery rhyme craft even more functional and effective! 


    To make the Jack be Nimble Jack be Quick craft:

    1. Start by cutting the simple shapes you’ll need to make the candlestick craft.  Older kids can work on scissor skills to cut these simple shapes.  
    2. Cutting from card stock is a great way to work on scissor accuracy because the resistance is greater than regular printer paper.  This allows children to slow their snipping speed and better accuracy when cutting along lines.
    3. Cut a semi-circle from colored paper and a rectangle from white paper.  
    4. Tear a square of each color of tissue paper.

    5. Glue the semi-circle onto the paper.  This is a great opportunity to talk about shapes with your toddler or preschooler.



    6. Glue the rectangle on top of the semicircle.


    7. Draw a flame shape with the glue.

    8. Have your child tear small pieces of the tissue paper.  

    Tearing paper and crumbling tissue paper is a great way to work on fine motor hand strength, opening of the web space (area between the thumb and index finger), and defining of the arches of the hand.  

    All of these areas are important for pencil grasp and endurance in handwriting and coloring.  

    Tearing tissue paper is such a great fine motor strengthening activity and one of my favorites!

     
    Glue the tissue paper onto the top of the candle stick.  You’re done!  So much fun for little ones who love Jack be nimble!
     
     
    Be sure to stop by and see all of the Nursery Rhyme crafts and activities from this week and next week!
     
     
     

    Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

    For more craft ideas, including templates and printable crafts that allow for data collection, be sure to get our resources inside The OT Toolbox Membership.

    Easy Shapes School Bus Craft

    by
    School Bus craft for screening skills during back to school time

    We love this easy bus craft as back to school crafts for kindergarten! School buses and the back-to-school season is the perfect time for a fun, low-prep bus craft that supports creativity and fine motor skills. We love using back to school themed activities in occupational therapy sessions for a reason…This paper bus activity is ideal for young kids, toddlers, kindergartners, and even older kids. Using simple materials like cardstock, glue, markers, and printables, this craft is a great option for the first day of school, a classroom display, or a back-to-school school activity.

    School Bus craft for screening skills during back to school time

    An easy school bus craft is just what kids need before back to school, along with a little crafting fun!


    I don’t want to even think about the end of summer and the start of school.  The summer fun is quickly passing by with long days of outdoor play and water activities.   We’ve got a few of the cousins heading back to school this fall.  A couple on the school bus and a few that will be starting up preschool for the first time. 

    New classes, new book bags, and new school shoes happen before the summer fun has even ended.  With all of the newness happening, this mama wanted to touch on an old familiar theme with the start of school quickly approaching.  


    This school bus craft was a fun way to create while we explored easy shapes.  This was a great craft for my two year old as we talked about the start of school and some easy shapes.

    Kids will love to make this school bus craft as a back to school craft that helps kids learn shapes.

    Back to School Craft

     
     
    This post contains affiliate links. 
     
    Easy shapes school bus craft
     
     

    School Bus Craft

    For this craft, all you need is a few items.
     
    I cut a few simple shapes from the paper.  An older child who is working on scissor skills could cut these shapes.
     
    Building our school bus was fun!  We moved our shapes around until we liked the bus.  This was fun for Big Sister (age 6) as she helped us build the bus and made sure the windows were where she liked them. 
     
    Baby Girl (age 2 and half) worked on her shape identification with this craft.  Big Sister and I would hold up a shape and ask her what it was.  She was loving the shape test!
     

    We glued the shapes in place on our bus when we got it looking like we wanted.  Big Sister used some scrap paper to draw bus stops for our bus.  I love the “baby stop”!

    school bus craft for learning shapes and preparing for back to school

     

    Easy Bus Craft for Kids of All Ages

    As an OT in schools, I love this craft to start off the school year because you can get a quick look at scissor skills, fine motor skills, planning and executive function, and much more. It’s a wonderful way to welcome the new school year with hands-on learning.

    Simple Steps and Creative Add-Ons

    This paper plate school bus craft (or use cardstock to make a more structured paper bus) is great for easy crafting in small groups or as part of a station activity. Add a black line for the road, draw headlights on the front, or invite kids to sketch their own child’s face in the windows for a personalized touch.

    Need a quick solution for class? Provide step-by-step instructions with a visual example, or print out bus shapes with cut-and-paste parts to make this a preschool craft that’s both fun and functional.

    Make It a Wheels on the Bus Craft!

    Turn your bus project into a Wheels on the Bus craft by adding interactive features to go along with the classic bus song. Use paper brads to make spinning wheels, or glue on circles cut from black construction paper. Attach craft sticks to act out the song as a puppet or prop during circle time. You can also label parts of the bus (“doors go open and shut,” “wipers go swish swish swish”) to reinforce early learning concepts while you craft.

    This is a fun idea that pairs perfectly with music, group time, and creative movement!

    Turn It Into a Pigeon Rides the Bus Craft

    We have many preschool book activities here on The OT Toolbox. This paper bus craft is a perfect way to extend the craft into the book, Pigeon Rides the Bus!

    Turn this craft into a Pigeon Rides the Bus craft inspired by Mo Willems’ beloved character. Simply add a drawing or cut-out of Pigeon riding in or driving the bus. Kids can glue Pigeon onto the driver’s seat or draw him peeking out the window using a marker or crayon. Pair the craft with a read-aloud and follow-up discussion to build on literacy and comprehension skills.

    This is a great way to tie in book-based learning with preschool crafts or kindergarten art projects.

    Why This Craft Works for Young Children

    This school bus art project uses simple crafts and easy paper crafts to build important early skills:

    • Promotes fine motor skills through cutting, gluing, and coloring
    • Encourages creativity and storytelling
    • Supports classroom community with a shared fun activity
    • Perfect for first week of school routines

    It’s one of those easy craft ideas that is great for building connection and confidence in your preschool class or at home.

    School Bus craft for screening skills during back to school time

    With one cutting craft, you can assess many areas:

    Fine Motor Skills

    • Cutting: Children cut squares, rectangles, and circles, which targets hand strength, bilateral coordination, and scissor skills.
    • Pasting/Glue Control: Squeezing glue bottles or using glue sticks promotes hand strength and precision.
    • Grasp Patterns: Encourages tripod grasp and refined finger movements when handling small shapes.

    Visual Motor & Perceptual Skills

    • Visual Discrimination: Identifying and matching shapes (square windows, rectangular bus body).
    • Figure-Ground: Picking out shapes from a group of cut pieces or worksheet.
    • Visual Closure: Recognizing the bus even if parts are missing or partially hidden.
    • Visual-Spatial Awareness: Placing parts of the bus (windows, wheels, stripes) in correct orientation and location.

    Bilateral Coordination

    • Cutting with Stabilization: Requires use of one hand to stabilize the paper while cutting with the other.
    • Assembly Tasks: Holding the bus body with one hand while placing and pressing shapes with the other.

    Executive Functioning Skills

    • Planning and Sequencing: Following steps in order (e.g., bus body → windows → wheels).
    • Working Memory: Remembering shape placement and order from visual or verbal instruction.
    • Inhibition: Waiting to glue or cut at the appropriate time within the task.

    Language and Cognitive Skills

    • Shape & Color Identification: Naming shapes and colors while assembling.
    • Following Directions: Completing a multi-step task with adult guidance or peer modeling.
    • Concept Development: Understanding positional concepts like “on top,” “next to,” “under.”

    Postural Control & Endurance

    • Seated Tolerance: Sitting upright to complete a tabletop activity from start to finish.
    • Core Engagement: Maintaining posture while using both hands in front of the body.

    Sensory Processing

    • Tactile Input: Handling paper, glue, and possibly stickers or markers.
    • Proprioceptive Input: Using controlled hand pressure for cutting and gluing.
    • Visual Input: Tracking lines while cutting and scanning for shape placement.

    Social and Emotional Skills

    • Turn-Taking and Sharing: During group crafts, materials may be shared.
    • Task Completion: Builds confidence by following through on a start-to-finish task.
    • Self-Expression: Decorating the bus with additional details or personalization (child’s name, colors).

    For more ways to focus on scissor skills, and the WHY behind development of cutting with scissors, check out our resource, The Scissor Skills Book.

    Check out The Scissor Skills Book for tips and strategies based on development from school based occupational therapists and physical therapists.

    Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

    Space Activities for Kids

    by
    Space camp ideas for home programs or DIY summer camp with space fine motor, galaxy crafts, and space sensory play

    If your kids are outer space enthusiasts, then this space theme activities are just the thing to add learning and skill building with space activities. This collection of space activities for kids are actually part of a DIY summer camp that we designed. When the kids need a backyard summer camp or something fun to look forward to, easy and creative activities based on a space theme can do just that. This summer, create a home summer camp with an Outer Space theme…all while building skills in therapy or at home. Our space theme slide deck is just one way to help kids build skills, and a great way to lead into space theme learning and play with the kids!

    For another space themed virtual therapy activity, try this free outer space Connect 4 game. It’s great for kids of all ages.

    Space camp ideas for home programs or DIY summer camp with space fine motor, galaxy crafts, and space sensory play

    Here, you’ll find everything you need to plan a space camp fun that builds skills like fine motor skills, gross motor skill development, sensory input, regulation, emotional support, bilateral coordination, eye-hand coordination, executive functioning skills, and more. Read on for all of the outer space fun!

    Space Camp for Kids

    Whether you are planning a space camp in your therapy programming or trying to think of ways to build skills for kids this summer in a fun and creative way, this space camp idea is for you. For parents that need something out-of-the-box this summer (that doesn’t break the bank!), a backyard space camp can be just the thing to get excited about.

    Outer space activities for a space camp or space theme home program

    Space theme ideas

    You’ll want to check out some other space activities we have here on the Toolbox website. Add these ideas to your space camp planning. These ideas can get you started with planning. Scroll below to find more specific space activities based on skill area.

    For more creative ideas with a space theme, be sure to check out my Outer Space Awesome Pinterest board.  

    We even grabbed up a handful of our all-time favorite Outer Space books from the library to share with you.  If you’re looking for activities to do with the kids this summer, a space theme will be a sure hit. Your Summer Camp at home will be complete with Space crafts, Space snacks, Space sensory, fine motor, and gross motor learning and play.

    Outer space theme activities for kids

    Space theme

    These activities are set up by theme (books, snacks, crafts, solar system models, sensory play, and movement learning activities) so that you can pick and choose activities for each day of your themed camp.  Make the week work for you!  Choose just one or two activities for each day, or go all out and do one from each category.  It’s totally up to you and your little campers! 

    space fine motor activities for using to improve fine motor skills with a space theme

    Space Fine Motor Activities

    Use this outer space play dough mat printable to work on hand strength, fine motor skills, and eye-hand coordination. Simply print it off and slide into a page protector to use each day during your space camp.

     We made this Outer Space model using pipe cleaners.  We didn’t get into planet size, but rather checked out the size of each planet compared to the others from The Planets book and crafted them based on the pictures in the book. we strung the pipe cleaner planets along fishing line and taped it between two walls. This was a fun way to explore how the planets are spaced from the sun.

    Outer Space Pipe cleaner solar system model

    Space Visual Motor Activities

    Visual motor skills and visual perception can be worked on with a space theme. Grab this free space visual discrimination worksheet to incorporate visual processing into a space camp.

    Here is another free space visual perception worksheet to print off and work on visual processing skills.

    This space maze is a visual motor activity that my own kids loved. Use Wikki Stix to build a maze and work on eye-hand coordination and other visual processing skills to work through the outer space maze.


    Outer Space Books

    Start off your daily activities during a week of Space activities with a Space book.  Some of our favorites are ones we read weekly and others are ones we love to check out from the library.
    Here are outer space books for kids.



    Outer Space Snacks

    Cooking with kids is a huge way to build motor skills and executive functioning skills through cooking. Below are outer space snacks that the kids can help to make while building skills.

    Outer space themed snack Stars and Planets snack for kids

    Affiliate links included below.

    We quickly made this space snack while doing a little space reading.  Kids will gobble up the stars and planets. We even made it a fine motor sorting activity by sorting the stars and planets from the snack mix.  This outer space themed snack will be a hit during your Summer Camp at home or space themed week.  We used a cup of Cheerios Cereal and a cup of Puffs snacks to make our stars and planets snack mix.  Have the kids sort the planets and stars into separate bowls for fine motor practice that Toddlers and young Preschoolers will love.

    More Space themed snacks to fill the rest of your week:

    Outer space snack ideas for kids

    Eat the solar system from Creative Kid Snacks
    Rocket Ship Wrap from Creative Kid Snacks
    Eat the Moon snack from Things to Share and Remember

    More Solar System Models for Kids for the rest of the week: 

    Make a solar system mobile like Artsy Craftsy Mom
    Use recycled plastic lids to create a solar system like Still Playing School
    Make a solar system with Legos like Kitchen Counter Chronicles.

    Outer Space Crafts

    If there is one thing that occupational therapists love, it’s the use of kids crafts as a therapy tool. Be sure to check out our Constellation crafts.  There are a bunch of space and star craft ideas based on constellations and outer space…that double as a fine motor and visual motor skill building tool.

    Use this space martian craft that the kids can make to build fine motor skills, and then use in handwriting activities to space between letters and words.

    Use these outer space crafts to make one each day of the week of your DIY summer camp…or just use them with your space-loving kiddo!

    Make a Rainbow Rocket ship like Frogs and Snails and Puppy Dog Tails
    Create a Textured Moon craft from Fantastic Fun and Learning
    Make Q-tip Star Art like Mess for Less
    Kids will love this Launching Rocket Ship toy from Lalymom.
    This Moon mobile will be a hit. (from Fantastic Fun and Learning)

    Outer Space Sensory Play

     Our Outer Space sensory activities were a huge hit in adding proprioception, vestibular, and tactile sensory play into the day. Use them as part of a sensory diet with learning components. Mix these space sensory ideas into the schedule as a reward that also meets the sensory needs to benefit regulation and social-emotional skills.

    These space themed sensory play ideas are ways to teach about planets, with an astronaut theme in mind. Know a little future astronaut? They will love these sensory play and learning ideas.

    Lots of ideas are to be found on our Outer Space sensory  round up!

    Space Themed Move and Learn Activities

    I love the rocket ship in this space themed party!  Climb in and out of a cardboard rocket ship for lots of movement and play. 
    Then, use another cardboard box to make this glow in the dark space fort like Lalymom.
    Nurturestore made a great Space math game.

    Space Fine Motor Kit

    Know a kiddo that loves all things space, astronauts, and planets? The Outer Space Fine Motor Kit is your chance to develop fine motor strength, dexterity, and coordination skills.

    Addressing hand strength, endurance, and precision is out of this world fun! The Outer Space Fine Motor Kit includes:

    • Fine Motor Mazes
    • Fine Motor Ten Frames for motor activities
    • 1-20 Star Counting Cards
    • Bead Copying Strips
    • Space Alien Directed Drawing Sheets

    This fine motor kit includes 24 pages of printable resources. Included in this printable pack are:

    1. Two pages of color coded bead copying strips
    2. Two pages of blank bead copying strips
    3. Four pages of “draw and write” directed drawing activities with a space theme (Includes 3 styles of handwriting lines: highlighted lines, single rule, and double rule)
    4. Nine pages of fine motor mazes
    5. 1-20 Outer Space Counting Cards
    6. Four pages of fine motor ten frames activities

    These printable activities extend to work on a variety of other functional areas, too: handwriting skills, numbers, math, adding, subtracting, one-to-one correspondence, scissor skills, coloring, and more.

    Click HERE to grab the Outer Space Fine Motor Mini-Kit.

    Outer Space Fine Motor Kit



    Have fun with your Outer Space themed week of fun! 

    Outer Space and Star Wars

    For even more space themed activities for kids, add some of these Star Wars occupational therapy ideas to your therapy planning. We’ve broken down a bunch of space ideas using the Star Wars theme and include handwriting activities, sensory play, executive functioning ideas, crafts, gross motor ideas, and more. Kids will love it!

    Set up Your Own Summer Camp

    What’s next? Actually taking the steps to create your own Summer side-gig! If you’re ready to take the leap and turn your camp idea into something real, the Summer Camp & Tutoring Side Business Workbook is your perfect next step. Created specifically for OT, PT, and SLP professionals, this printable guide walks you through everything you need to set up and run your own skill-based summer program. It walks you through everything you need to know about this process, from planning and pricing to registration forms, waivers, and activity templates.

    Whether you’re thinking about a handwriting bootcamp, sensory playgroup, or life skills club, this workbook helps you put your ideas into action, on your schedule, with your expertise, and without the overwhelm.

    This workbook was inspired by my own experience starting a sensory playgroup while juggling work and mom life. I built it on my own terms, brought my kids along, and created fun, meaningful experiences that supported real skill development, and made extra income while doing it.

    Now it’s your turn! Check out the Summer Camp Guide Workbook here.

    Inside the workbook, you’ll find:

    • Program planning worksheets
    • Budget and pricing calculator
    • Activity planners
    • Registration and intake forms
    • Legal/safety templates (like waivers)
    • Ideas for promotion, themes, and scheduling
    • …and everything you need to confidently launch a camp, playgroup, or tutoring program this summer.

    Whether you want to run handwriting bootcamps, sensory skill groups, or one-on-one sessions, you don’t need a full course or new certification. You just need a starting point. This is it.

    Grab the workbook here.

    Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

    Coffee Filter Butterfly Craft

    by
    coffee filter butterfly craft for kids

    I love using coffee filter butterfly crafts in occupational therapy to work on several skill areas. The fine motor benefits are huge with this one. This coffee filter butterfly craft is a great fine motor and bilateral coordination activity for kids. If you are looking for butterfly life cycle crafts, this one is a great addition. Or, if you are seeking Spring OT activities, be sure to add this colorful fine motor butterfly craft to your list.

    Coffee filter butterfly craft to build fine motor skills in kids.

    Why make a Coffee Filter Butterfly Craft?

    One craft that hits on several skill areas is a benefit in pediatric occupational therapy sessions. This coffee filter craft is a nice one to develop skills because it works on so many areas that are covered in therapy sessions:

    • Pinch and grip strength
    • Eye hand coordination
    • Bilateral coordination
    • Motor planning
    • Crossing midline
    • Precision and dexterity
    • Open-thumb web-space
    • Arch development
    • Separation of the sides of the hand
    • Finger isolation
    • Thumb IP joint flexion (great for pencil grasp!)

    How to make a coffee filter butterfly craft

    This was an easy set-up and fun craft we did one afternoon recently.  You’ll need the following materials:

    • Coffee filters
    • Water color paints/water
    • A straw
    • Clothes pin
    • Pipe cleaner
    • String (to make a banner)

    Directions to make a tie dye coffee filter butterfly

    1. Use a paint brush to add a bit of water to the wells of a water color paint pallet. To really work on fine motor skills, use your thumb to drop water droplets into the paint tubs.
    2. Use the straw to drip colored water from the water color paints. Then drop them onto the coffee filter. Allow the colors to blend into one another. If you add more water to the paint wells, you can transfer that water with the straw.

    This version of painting a coffee filter can be a challenging fine motor task but one that really develops separation of the sides of the hands, thumb IP joint flexion, and motor planning skills.

    To make this painting process easier, try using a eye dropper where the child can squeeze the end of a small dropper to draw up water from the water color wells. Another option is using a small plastic syringe to draw up watercolor paint and dropping it onto the coffee filter.

    Read more about the thumb IP joint and thumb wrap grasp in pencil grip. This craft is a powerful way to work on this functional grasp skill!

    Make a coffee filter craft and build fine motor skills with kids using a straw to paint.

    Little Guy and Big Sister both loved dropping the water into the color wells.  Big Sister felt pretty good about showing her little brother how to drop the water into the color wells using her straw. 

    Use straws to paint with watercolors and work on fine motor skills with kids.

    This is a great activity to work on thumb isolation and control of the thumb during fine motor activities. 

    Next, dip the edges of the coffee filters into the colors so the water creeps onto the edges of the coffee filter.

    Other ways to add the color can use the straw end or the paint brush. This craft is nice because it can be adjusted for many different kids.

    When kids drip the color on with a paintbrush, or drop color with the straw, it’s fun to try different ways to color the filters and see the colors blend together.  

    Work on fine motor strength with clothes pins to make a butterfly coffee filter craft.

    Next, use clothes pins to pinch the middle of the coffee filter together in the middle. This is a great hand strengthening and eye-hand coordination task.

    Finally, add a pipe cleaner to the end of the clothes pin for the antenna of the coffee filter butterfly. Bend the pipe cleaner around the clothes pin and twist it up to make antenna.

    Coffee filter butterfly craft for building fine motor skills.

    If you like to create several butterflies in a variety of colors, you can clip them onto the string for an other bilateral coordination task.

    They look pretty!  Big Sister wanted to hang them on the ceiling of her room.  We strung the butterflies on yarn and taped them to her ceiling.  This would be a great way to display a whole client caseload of coffee filter butterflies and really show off those fine motor skills!

    Add this butterfly craft to a butterfly theme in therapy or home programing.

    These heavy work cards include a page of butterfly life cycle activities that incorporate calming heavy work activities for motor planning and proprioceptive benefits.

    Or, in the Spring Fine Motor Kit, you’ll find butterfly and caterpillar activities that are designed to build a variety of fine  motor manipulation, dexterity, and strengthening tasks.

    Butterfly coffee filter craft

    Spring Fine Motor Kit

    Score Fine Motor Tools and resources and help kids build the skills they need to thrive!

    Developing hand strength, dexterity, dexterity, precision skills, and eye-hand coordination skills that kids need for holding and writing with a pencil, coloring, and manipulating small objects in every day task doesn’t need to be difficult. The Spring Fine Motor Kit includes 100 pages of fine motor activities, worksheets, crafts, and more:

    Spring fine motor kit set of printable fine motor skills worksheets for kids.
    • Lacing cards
    • Sensory bin cards
    • Hole punch activities
    • Pencil control worksheets
    • Play dough mats
    • Write the Room cards
    • Modified paper
    • Sticker activities
    • MUCH MORE

    Click here to add this resource set to your therapy toolbox.

    Spring Fine Motor Kit
    Spring Fine Motor Kit: TONS of resources and tools to build stronger hands.

    Grab your copy of the Spring Fine Motor Kit and build coordination, strength, and endurance in fun and creative activities. Click here to add this resource set to your therapy toolbox.

    Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

     

     

    Valentine’s Day Heart Craft

    by
    paper heart craft

    Creating a simple heart craft is a fun and engaging way to support fine motor skill development while celebrating Valentine’s Day. It’s a great addition to your Valentine’s Day Occupational therapy activity ideas! As occupational therapists, we believe in using hands-on activities to help children build important skills through play and creativity.

    paper heart craft

    Incorporating an easy heart craft into therapy sessions, classrooms, or at home can encourage children to strengthen their hand muscles, improve coordination, and practice scissor skills, while making something festive and fun.

    From construction paper heart projects to cut folded paper designs, this page is filled with simple Valentine’s Day crafts for preschoolers that support fine motor development. Whether you’re looking for a heart craft to help with cutting skills, hand strength, or coordination, this activity is a great way to promote learning while celebrating the holiday with creativity.

    We have other heart crafts here on the website you’ll want to check out, too.

    Cutting a paper heart

    Before we get into the craft, let’s talk about how a simple paper heart craft is an easy way to work on skills in an occupational therapy session.

    I love to use an easy craft like, just cutting construction paper into a heart shape because we are working on so many areas! This activity naturally promotes scissor skills, as children must carefully hold and manipulate scissors to follow a curved cutting line.

    Cutting along a folded edge provides a visual and tactile guide, helping children develop control and precision while strengthening the muscles in their hands. You can make the lines bold or thin. You can use thick or thinner paper…there are so many ways to individualize this one craft, which is perfect for the busy school based OT.

    Additionally, bilateral coordination is required as one hand stabilizes the paper while the other operates the scissors, reinforcing the ability to use both hands together in a coordinated manner. This carries over into daily tasks like dressing, handwriting, and using utensils.

    Beyond cutting, the act of folding the paper before cutting works on pinch strength and hand dexterity. Pressing the paper together and making a crease encourages children to use their fingertips and develop the small muscles of the hand, which are important for fine motor control.

    Occupational therapists can use this easy heart craft as a tool to address different areas of need by adapting the activity to the child’s skill level. For children with weaker hand strength, using thinner paper or assisting with the fold can make the task more accessible, while those needing more of a challenge can try folding multiple layers or cutting intricate designs. By incorporating this simple craft into therapy sessions, school activities, or home play, therapists, parents, and teachers can provide a fun and engaging way to build foundational motor skills in a meaningful and festive way.

     
    Are you getting ready for Valentine’s day?  Maybe putting together a few ideas for next week or just enjoying the pretty pink pictures (is Valentine’s Day reeeeally a holiday??)  maybe you are looking for a few Valentine’s Day activities to use in occupational therapy.
     
    Either way, you have to admit…the hearts, love, and kindness is pretty contagious!   We’ve been having fun doing a few Valentines Day activities and this Sparkle Heart Craft was no exception.  Valentine’s Day Activities are just FUN.  This one was scented and smelled as pretty as it looked.
     
     
    picture of sparkle heart craft for kids to make
     
     

    Paper Heart Craft

     
    We started with a few supplies:
     
    Construction paper hearts and bath salts

     

    I cut a few hearts from the construction paper.  Baby Girl did this craft with me and she was excited to see the hearts.

    I poured a little of the pomegranate bath salts into a little cup.  They smelled SO good!  This craft was turning sensory already.

    Bath salts sprinkled on glue for a heart craft for kids

     

    Next, I used the glue to draw a couple of hearts and showed Baby Girl how to sprinkle the salts on the glue.  She was hooked!

     

    She LOVED this activity!  She squeezed the glue and drew all kinds of decorations on our red hearts.  Sprinkling the bath salts was a great way to encourage pincer grasp. 

    There were also times when she transitioned to a tripod grasp to sprinkle the glitter. Using the pointer finger, middle finger, and thumb to grasp with the ring and pinkie fingers tucked into the palm is a tripod grasp.  She sprinkled the salts all over the glue.  I had to cut more hearts because she wanted to keep making more and more sparkly hearts!

     

    Valentine’s Day Craft with Fine Motor Skills

     
    This craft worked on tripod grasp by sprinkling the bath salts (with a great scent!) and gross grasp of the hand when squeezing the glue bottle.  This was a great activity for little hands!
     
    Toddler squeezing glue onto construction paper hearts

    Looking for more Valentine’s Day activities?  You may also like Valentine’s Day Goop Painting for more sensory and fine motor fun!

    Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

    Toys to Improve Pencil Grasp

    by
    Juguetes para agarrar el lápiz

    Have you ever used pencil grasp toys to support development of handwriting? Helping kids with pencil grasp can be a challenge, so using motivating and fun activities to support the underlying skill areas is essential. Today, we’re going over the best occupational therapy toys that target pencil grasp development. Pencil grasp toys to challenge precision, dexterity, endurance, separation of the sides of the hand, and other skills needed for a functional pencil grasp. All of this can happen through play using toys to support stronger hands by focusing on grasp pattern development through play!

    Amazon affiliate links are included in this blog post. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases.

    The best pencil grasp toys to support the fine motor skills needed for a better pencil grip.

    Recently, we shared fine motor toy ideas and then gross motor toys. Both of these areas are closely related to a functional pencil grasp, so be sure to check out those toy suggestions, too.

    Pencil Grasp Toys

    We love coming up with fun play and craft activities designed to work on the development of an efficient grasp.  Being the season of gifting to others, we thought it would be fun to bring you our top recommended toys to work on tripod grasp, intrinsic muscle strength, rotation of the pencil while handwriting, and an open thumb web space. 

    Children who have difficulty with handwriting may completely HATE to work on letter formation and pencil grip.  Why not gift them with a fun toy this holiday that will work on the developmental skills necessary to improve their grip on the pencil?  Make the exercise fun as they PLAY their way to a better pencil grasp!

    Handwriting is more than just pencil grasp! Manipulating a pencil to write letters and numbers has a lot to do with visual perceptual skills. You’ll find easy and fun ways to work on visual perceptual skills through play here. 


    You will also love these Games to Improve Pencil Grasp

    Best Toys to Improve Pencil Grasp

    Toys that will help improve pencil grasp

    {Note: This post contains affiliate links.}

    Toys That Improve Pencil Grasp

    Coming up with this list, we thought about the skills needed for an appropriate pencil grasp and age-appropriate handwriting.  This toy gift guide is broken down into toys that will help with different sets of problem areas when it comes to a poor pencil grasp.

    Let’s take a closer look at toy suggestions for these areas:

    • Toys for Tripod Grasp
    • Toys for an Open Thumb Web Space
    • Toys for Hand Strength
    • Toys for Extended Wrist

    Toys for Tripod Grasp

    Tripod grasp: The most efficient way to hold the pencil when writing is with a dynamic tripod grasp. While not necessary…a functional grasp works, too…a tripod grasp is a term we’ve probably all heard described before.  So WHAT is a tripod grasp? 

    A Tripod grasp starts with a nice round circle made with the thumb and index finger.  The pencil is pinched with the tips of the thumb and index finger and held close to the point of the pencil.  The pencil is resting on and assisted by the middle finger.  The ring finger and pinky fingers are tucked into the palm.  All movement should happen with the fingers and thumb.  The wrist and arm should not move while writing, coloring, or drawing. 

    Often times, new pencil and crayon users will hold the writing utensil in a different way.  You might see four fingers opposing the thumb to hold the pencil.  You might see the pencil positioned in the knuckles between the index and middle fingers.  Maybe they hold the pencil away from the tip where the lead is and instead hold it in the middle of the pencil shaft.  There are SO many variations of awkward and inefficient pencil grasps.  If your little hand writer is showing some version that affects their letter formation and pencil control, try a few of these fun toys…

    A few toys that help to encourage a tripod grasp:

    Light Brite: (affiliate link) Picking up and manipulating those little colored pegs encourage a tripod grasp.  Pushing them through the paper and into the holes is a great resistive exercise…disguised as FUN! 

    We have this Lite Brite Flatscreen – Red (affiliate link) from Hasbro and love making pictures with the pegs!  When the child holds the pegs in his hand, it’s a great way to encourage the ring finger and pinkie finger in a tucked position.  Show your child how to pick up a handful of pegs and “squirrel them away” in their palm while they push one peg into the board.  What a great fine motor exercise!  Not to mention, the dots of the guide paper is a great visual motor activity…so important in handwriting!

    Lacing Cards: (affiliate link) Lacing cards are a great way to encourage a tripod grasp.  This set of Lacing Shapes (affiliate link) from Patch Products come in simple shapes with bold colors. The child must hold the tip of the string in a dynamic tripod grasp to push through the holes of the card.  If your child has their thumb squashed up against their index finger while threading the cards, be sure to show them how to make a nice round circle for an easier time.

    Peg Boards: (affiliate link) Grasping pegs encourage a tripod grasp especially while pushing them into the holes of a peg board.  Here are homemade pegboard ideas and even a precision pegboard you can make using perler beads (see below).

    This Lauri Tall-Stacker Pegs Building Set (affiliate link) from Lauri is great for building peg towers while learning colors and shapes. 

    Older kids might love Fusion Beads like the Perler Beads 6,000 Count Bucket-Multi Mix (affiliate link) from Perler.

    Spike the Fine Motor Hedge Hog– (affiliate link) This fine motor toy builds a stronger tripod grasp, and when positioned appropriately, can place the wrist into an extended position, too. This helps to further refine precision movements for accuracy and dexterity. These are great skills to carry over to pencil control and pencil movements during handwriting tasks.

    Learning Resources 3 Prong Tong– (affiliate link) This tong tool promotes a better grasp on objects…but only if the hand is positioned correctly. If you allow kids to just pick up the 3 prong tongs and start using them, they likely will position the tong into their hand with a gross grasp, or by using all of the fingers along the length of the prong. This can actually strengthen the wrong muscles, and promote an ineffective motor plan that becomes muscle memory when writing with a pencil.

    When kids use these tongs, they should have their hand positioned almost under the tongs, as if it were a pencil. When used this way, the tongs can strengthen the intrinsic muscles and promote a tripod grasp. These 3 prong tongs can work well when used correctly, but be sure to work along side a child with this one.

    Toys for Open Thumb Web Space

    Sometimes you will see a child who is holding their pencil with a closed web space.  This happens when the thumb web space is the area between the thumb and the index finger.  If the thumb is squashed up against the side of their index finger, they are not able to manipulate the pencil with small movements.  They might move their whole arm to make letters instead of just the hand.  A closed web space is an inefficient way to grasp the pencil and will lead to poor handwriting.  This type of positioning requires activities that strengthen and stabilize the thumb.

    A few toys that help encourage an open web space:

    Tweezer Games:  Tweezer activities promote an open web space and stabilization of the thumb.  This Avalanche Fruit Stand (affiliate link) from Learning Resources is a colorful way to encourage an open web space.  The vertical surface is perfect for encouraging an extended wrist.

    Bead Sets: (affiliate link) Stringing beads is a good way to encourage an open web space.  The child must hold the bead and string between their thumb and index fingers.  Collapsing of the thumb web space will happen when the child demonstrates weakness in the muscles of the thumb.  Beading is a repetitive activity and promotes strength. 

    This Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Stringing Beads with over 200 beads (affiliate link) from Melissa & Doug has over 200 beads in different colors and shapes, and even letters!  You could even form sentences for the child to copy and practice their improved pencil grasp!

    Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots: (affiliate link) Often times, a child will wrap their thumb around the index finger when they are writing with a pencil.. This indicates instability in the thumb and the muscles that allow for smooth pencil motions. 

    Pushing down on the buttons of the Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em ROBOTS Game (affiliate link) from Mattel really strengthens the muscles of the thumb and allows for more stability leading to an open web space and ultimately more fluid motions of the pencil in letter formation.  Plus, this game is just plain old FUN for kids of all ages!

    Toys for Hand Strength

    Hand Strength:  If a child has weakness in their hands, they may complain that their hand is tired when they write or color.  Then, to compensate for muscle fatigue, they resort to an inefficient hand grasp.  They may grip the pencil with four fingers or with their whole palm.  many times, a child will start off with a nice tripod grasp and then switch to a less efficient grasp…or even switch hands!  Do they complain that their hand is tired or that it hurts?  These kiddos need to work on hand strength.  To allow for increased endurance when writing and coloring, this child would benefit from strengthening exercises.

    A few toys that help encourage hand strength:

    Pop Beads:  (affiliate link) Pushing pop beads together is a perfect way to strengthen the intrinsic muscles of the hands including the arches of the hands. 

    Pop beads are such a fun toy that can be used to make patterns, different lengths, bracelets, necklaces, and even shapes. This Pop Beads (affiliate link) from ConstructivePlaythings are unique in their shape, color, sizes, and textures. A twist on the classic bead, this set will excite girls and boys of all ages.  Be sure to shop for size-appropriate beads for your child’s hands.

    Play-Doh: (affiliate link) Play dough is the ultimate open-ended toy for hand strengthening.  There are unlimited ways to play all the while encouraging hand development. 

    We love this Play-Doh 24-Pack of Colors(affiliate link) for lots of creative play!  Hide coins, beans, or beads in the dough and allow the child to find the items.  Roll small balls of dough using just the thumb, index, and middle fingers. 

    Roll a play dough snake with the dough and have the child pinch the dough between their thumb and index finger.  Just get creative and make some things with your play dough.  Most of all, have fun!

    Tissue Paper Art: (affiliate link) There is possible no better art project for hand strengthening than tissue paper art!  Crumbling little bits of tissue paper is perfect for strengthening the small muscles of the hand. 

    Encourage your child to use just their finger tips to crumble the bits of tissue paper rather than two hands to crumble.  This ALEX® Toys – Early Learning Tissue Paper Art -Little Hands 521W (affiliate link) from Alex Toys is bold, colorful and just plain fun art!  Even better for the intrinsic muscles of the hands is tearing bits of paper before crumbling.

    Squeeze Toys:(affiliate link) a gross grasp is using the whole hand to squeeze and flex into a grip. 

    What a great way to strengthen the muscles of the hands!  This Lobster Claw Catcher (affiliate link) from is a fun way to encourage hand strength and endurance for coloring and writing.

    Geoboard Activities– (affiliate link) Using a geoboard supports hand strength to enable endurance in handwriting. Manipulating the rubber bands promotes finger isolation, open thumb web-space, and and extended wrist.

    Learning Resources Helping Hands Fine Motor Tool Set Toy– (affiliate link) This set of fine motor tools includes an eye-dropper, scissor scoops, and tongs. The sensory bin scoops and tools support hand strength through manipulating small objects or water.

    These tools are a great way to strengthen the exact muscles needed for a functional pencil grasp.

    Toys for Extended Wrist

    Extended Wrist:  An Extended wrist is a slightly bent back wrist.  When a child’s hand is bent forward toward the palm, they typically exhibit inefficient grasp on the pencil and weakness in the hand. A slight bend in the wrist towards the back of the hand (bent up toward the ceiling when writing) allows for better movement and flow of the fingers when forming letters.  Often times a child with a poor handwriting demonstrates a “hooked wrist” or a flat wrist and it leads back to inefficient control of the pencil and messy handwriting. 

    A few toys that help encourage an Extended Wrist:

    Easel: (affiliate link) An easel can be used in so many ways while encouraging an extended wrist.  Paint, draw, color, or write on the elevated surface.  We love taping contact paper to our easel and sticking all kinds of craft supplies. 

    This really encourages an extended wrist while using a tripod grasp or tip to tip grasp to manipulate little items (think tissue paper, sequins, foil squares…the possibilities are endless!) This Easel (affiliate link) is great for extended wrist activities.  And, it even folds down to reveal a desk surface.  It’s the perfect gift to promote improved handwriting!

    Ker Plunk: (affiliate link) The Ker Plunk Game (affiliate link) from Mattel encourages an extended wrist as the child pushes the sticks into the holes of the game.  They are encouraged to use a tripod grasp to hold the sticks as well.  Rotating the sticks encourages two types of in-hand manipulation.

    Take this game a step further in handwriting exercise for strengthening and play laying down on the floor, propped up on your elbows.  Getting down on the floor to play will activate the large muscles of the back and the shoulder girdle to improve precision in pencil grasp.

    Montessori Boards-(affiliate link) Precision and dexterity activities are needed for pencil grasp and when you add in dexterity tasks and manipulation of tongs, spoons, or tweezers to move and place objects, it’s a win-win.

    This precision Montessori board (affiliate link) builds the skills needed for pencil grasp: a stabile wrist, in-hand manipulation, open thumb web space, and dexterity.

    Best toys and ideas to help kids improve their pencil grasp

    Looking for a few activities to improve handwriting skills? Check out our round-up of the best handwriting activities from our blog and these other toy suggestions:

    More Therapy Toy Ideas

    Want to find more therapy recommended toys to help kids develop specific skills? Check out the list of skill areas below.

    1. Fine Motor Toys 
    2. Gross Motor Toys 
    3. Pencil Grasp Toys
    4. Toys for Reluctant Writers
    5. Toys for Spatial Awareness
    6. Toys for Visual Tracking
    7. Toys for Sensory Play 
    8. Bilateral Coordination Toys 
    9. Games for Executive Functioning Skills
    10. Toys and Tools to Improve Visual Perception
    11. Toys to Help with Scissors Skills
    12. Toys for Attention and Focus

    Printable List of Toys for Pencil Grasp

    Want a printable copy of our therapist-recommended toys to support pencil grasp?

    As therapy professionals, we LOVE to recommend therapy toys that build skills! This toy list is done for you so you don’t need to recreate the wheel.

    Your therapy caseload will love these PENCIL GRASP toy recommendations. (There’s space on this handout for you to write in your own toy suggestions, to meet the client’s individual needs, too!)

    Enter your email address into the form below. The OT Toolbox Member’s Club Members can access this handout inside the dashboard, under Educational Handouts. Just be sure to log into your account, first!

    Therapist-Recommended ​
    PENCIL GRASP TOYS HANDOUT

    ​

      We won’t send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.

      Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.

      Bilateral Coordination Toys

      by
      Bilateral coordination toys

      Here we are covering all things bilateral coordination toys. When it comes to bilateral integration, coordinating both sides of the body in play can be a challenge for some children. These bilateral skills impact functional use of the body, motor planning, and bilateral integration as a whole. It’s through play with occupational therapy toys targeting bilateral skills that children can strengthen and develop this essential motor skill. Let’s dissect a few select toys that promote this skill.

      Amazon affiliate links are included in this blog post. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases.

      Bilateral Coordination Toys

      We’ve previously covered both fine motor toy ideas and gross motor toys. Today’s topic closely mirrors those areas. Today is all about the bilateral integration that goes into motor play. 

      First, let’s talk Bilateral Coordination Toys!

      Bilateral coordination toys are an occupational therapy intervention that helps children develop essential skills in bilateral integration. Toys that use both hands in a coordinated manner help children with bilateral coordination, crossing midline, and using both hands in tasks. These are essential skills that allow for an integration of both sides of the body, but more than that, bilateral coordination tells us that the brain is communicating effectively and sharing information between sides of the brain.

      Today, I’m excited to share bilateral coordination toys and games to help support this essential skill.

      Bilateral coordination toys for kids to develop coordination of both sides of the body.

      Bilateral integration

      Bilateral coordination in functional tasks makes up much of our day! Think of all of the other areas where you are using both hands or both sides of the body at the same time: getting dressed, tying shoes, cooking, typing, holding a book while reading, pouring a glass of water…the list could go on and on!

      Read about bilateral integration in the cross crawl exercise resource.

      This integrated use of both sides of the body can be developed through play.

      Using both sides of the body together is a skill needed for many tasks: writing with a pencil with one hand while stabilizing paper with the other hand is one such activity.

      Another bilateral coordination task is cutting with scissors with one hand while holding and manipulating paper with the other hand.

      For children with difficulty in crossing midline, or using integrated bilateral skills, using toys in play is an effective way to work on and nurture this skill.

      Looking for a toy to work on bilateral coordination to add to your gift giving this holiday season? Today we are covering ways to build bilateral coordination skills using toys and everyday items. We also have another giveaway to share today. This time it’s a fine motor toy that promotes a variety of sills, bilateral integration being one of them. I wanted to highlight this as a toy for building bilateral coordination because as we know, promoting this skill is a valuable building block to other tasks such as handwriting, cutting with scissors, self-care tasks, and more.

      Working on bilateral coordination in play is a means and a strategy for building this essential skill. So, why is bilateral coordination so important? And what exactly does bilateral coordination mean?

      DIY Bilateral Coordination Toys

      We’ve shared quite a few bilateral coordination toys and DIY activities here on this site in the past.

      A bilateral coordination lacing plate is a DIY toy and activity that can be used to work on coordinated use of both hands with a variety of themes.

      Using puzzles and games that you already have with an extra special addition can be a great way to work on bilateral coordination with puzzles.

      Play dough and sensory doughs are fun ways to play while working on skills like bilateral coordination and other motor skills.

      Stickers are an easy way to work on bilateral coordination and can be used in the classroom, clinic, or home and in combination with obstacle courses and other motor activities.

      Pegboards (both DIY and store-bought versions), are a fantastic way to work on bilateral coordination in play and in developing visual motor skills and coordination.

      DIY pick-up sticks are a fun way to address bilateral integration and coordinated use of both hands together.

      Making DIY lacing cards are a fun way to work on bilateral coordination. Making the lacing cards is part of the fun.

      Miniature rhythm sticks can be a musical and creative way to encourage bilateral coordination.

      Lock and keys games like with this DIY lock and key activity makes fine motor development an out of the box way to work on skills kids need for independence and instrumental activities of daily living.

      Bilateral Coordination Toys

      There are many bilateral coordination toys on the market as well. Let’s take a look at some toys and games that you can add to your therapy toolbox.

      Amazon affiliate links are included below.

      Pop Tubes Toy for Bilateral Coordination– (affiliate link) Pop tubes can be used in many ways to work on bilateral skills. Use them for a fine motor bilateral coordination task, or use them to work on a large scale or small scale. Wrap one around a wrist and build off of that tube. Or create a chain of tubes. Hold one and drop objects through the tube and into a container. How will you use this bilateral coordination toy?

      Bilateral coordination toy for use in bilateral coordination obstacle courses and other occupational therapy interventions.

      TruBalance Bilateral Coordination Toy– (affiliate link) This toy requires both hands as well as the eyes to challenge balance, coordination, and bimanual skills. Kids can work with this toy while sitting, standing, or in more challenging positions. Try incorporating couch cushions for a balance activity. Use this toy in a bilateral coordination obstacle course. Kids can use the pieces in a scavenger hunt type of activity where the parts are scattered at various levels and positioning, allowing the child to crawl, climb, walk, or squat while balancing the toy. The options go on and on!

      Use nuts and bolts activities to help kids develop bilateral coordination.

      Nuts and Bolts Bilateral Coordination Toy– (affiliate link) This nuts and bolts activity is great for developing fine motor skills as well as bilateral coordination by requiring the child to use one hand to manipulate the parts while the other hand acts as a stabilizer. This is a nice way to develop skills needed for tasks like handwriting, pouring, stabilizing, cooking, etc.

      Another great option is a tube building toy. This has a lot of open-ended creative building that can be done.

      Zoom ball in therapy can be used to work on bilateral coordination, visual convergence, core strength, shoulder stability, and motor planning.

      Zoom Ball– (affiliate link) This classic toy is such a great way to work on many skills: bilateral coordination, core strength, shoulder stability, visual convergence, motor planning, and coordination. Just like the TruBalance toy, a zoom ball can be used in different positions to challenge balance and vestibular input: Try using the zoom ball in sitting, standing, kneeling, standing on couch cushions, a slant…again, the options are limitless! Use our favorite zoom ball games to get started.

      Thumbs up is a bilateral coordination game for kids.

      Thumbs Up Game– (affiliate link) This bilateral coordination game requires players to place rings on their thumb in a “thumbs up” position while they race to scoop and find the correct combination of colored rings to add to their thumb. It’s a fun racing game that builds visual perceptual skills too: figure ground, visual discrimination, visual memory, as well as the visual processing skill of scanning.

      Lacing cards help kids develop bilateral coordination skills.

      Lacing Buttons– (affiliate link) There is no doubt about the power of lacing cards when it comes to developing bilateral coordination skills. However, this lacing buttons activity takes it up a notch with the eye-hand coordination and visual processing skills. Kids can lace buttons onto wooden shirt pieces while building bilateral skills, fine motor skills, and eye-hand coordination. However, the set also includes puzzle cards that ask the child to lace on colored buttons in specific order so it matches the cards. What a workout in visual processing skills, too!

      use lacing beads to help kids with coordination, fine motor skills, and bimanual skills.

      Animal Lacing Beads– (affiliate link) These lacing beads are chunky wooden animals that help kids develop bilateral coordination, eye-hand coordination, fine motor skills, and visual perceptual skills. As an occupational therapist, I am drawn to this toy because of the different animals that could be used in sequencing activities, sensory bins, pretend play, stacking activities, and so much more.

      Apple lacing activity for bilateral skills.

      Wooden Lacing Apple– (affiliate link) This lacing puzzle challenges bilateral coordination skills and can be used to work on eye-hand coordination, tripod grasp, and motor planning. Use this activity to help with stabilization as well.

      Press blocks offer a sensory feedback opportunity for building bilateral coordination.

      Press and Stay Blocks– (affiliate link) These building blocks require bilateral coordination with a press so they stay, helping kids to develop bilateral coordination and get proprioceptive input to push them together and then take them apart. Building blocks are a great way to build fine motor skills and visual perceptual skills, and these are a great addition to your therapy toolbox collection.

      Labyrinth Game– (affiliate link) This maze game is a favorite in our house, and a tool for building bilateral coordination and visual perceptual skills too. Kids need to manipulate two knobs at the same time and coordinate visual information with one hand or the other…or both. It’s a brain building challenge that involves both sides of the body. Challenge kids to do this activity in a kneel or while standing on their knees at a low table to challenge balance and offer proprioceptive input as well.

      fine motor toy for kids

      Octi Buckle Plush Toy with Hook and Loop Straps– (affiliate link) This play toy is a strategy to encourage development of fine motor skills, problem solving, color matching, coordination, and more. This stuffed play buddy is a toy that promotes development of many skills, bilateral coordination being one of them.

      Using toys that double as quiet time activities, busy bags, or travel toys…all while working on skills is what makes toys like the buckle plush toy a therapist-approved toy. A buckle toy, with bright colors, shapes, straps, and zipper pouch will provide countless hours of recognition activities, brain building games and development puzzles. Your little one will stay busy counting the number of straps, connecting them together, pulling them apart, and starting over again. Kids can hide small items and treasures in the zip pouch, then unzip it later and get excited over their discovery!

      More Bilateral coordination activities

      Amazon affiliate links are included below.

      Also, check out these other toy suggestions based on therapeutic development through play.

      1. Fine Motor Toys 
      2. Gross Motor Toys 
      3. Pencil Grasp Toys 
      4. Toys for Reluctant Writers
      5. Toys for Spatial Awareness 
      6. Toys for Visual Tracking 
      7. Toys for Sensory Play 
      8. Bilateral Coordination Toys 
      9. Games for Executive Functioning Skills 
      10. Toys and Tools to Improve Visual Perception 
      11. Toys to Help with Scissors Skills
      12. Toys for Attention and Focus 

      Printable List of Toys for Bilateral Coordination

      Want a printable copy of our therapist-recommended toys to support bilateral coordination?

      As therapy professionals, we LOVE to recommend therapy toys that build skills! This toy list is done for you so you don’t need to recreate the wheel.

      Your therapy caseload will love these BILATERAL COORDINATION toy recommendations. (There’s space on this handout for you to write in your own toy suggestions, to meet the client’s individual needs, too!)

      Enter your email address into the form below. The OT Toolbox Member’s Club Members can access this handout inside the dashboard, under Handouts. Just be sure to log into your account, first!

      Therapist-Recommended ​
      BILATERAL COORDINATION TOYS HANDOUT

      ​

        We won’t send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.

        Colleen Beck, OTR/L has been an occupational therapist since 2000, working in school-based, hand therapy, outpatient peds, EI, and SNF. Colleen created The OT Toolbox to inspire therapists, teachers, and parents with easy and fun tools to help children thrive. Read her story about going from an OT making $3/hour (after paying for kids’ childcare) to a full-time OT resource creator for millions of readers. Want to collaborate? Send an email to contact@theottoolbox.com.