Gross and Fine Motor Skills

How to help your children develop their gross and fine motor
skills.

There are always questions when raising

children, and since every child is different
we want to help them develop to their fullest
potential.
Some key questions in this article relate to
what fine and gross motor skills are, and
how we can support our children to develop
them. If you are unable to find the answers
you are looking for there are always com-
munity supports available to assist you.

What Are Fine Motor Skills?

Special points of interest:
· What are fine motor
skills? Fine motor skills pages, eating, cut- Fine motor skills
are achieved ting with scissors, develop after
· What are gross motor
when children and using computer gross motor
skills?
learn to use their keyboards. Mastery skills, which con-
· How do we help our smaller muscles, of fine motor skills trol actions like
children develop gross
and fine motor skills?
like muscles in requires precision throwing and
the hands, fin- and coordination. kicking balls, as
· Fine motor and gross gers, and wrists. well as walking
motor from birth to age Children use their and jumping.
five.
fine motor skills Gross motor
when writing, skills utilize larg-
holding small er muscle groups
items, buttoning and require less
clothing, turning precision.
 PAGE 2 GROSS AND FINE MOTOR SKILLS

How Do We Help Children Develop Fine Motor Skills?

Practice, practice, practice. In most cases of fine motor skill These activities focus on smaller muscle
development, practice does, in fact, make perfect. Some groups. Using the same muscles can help
ways to develop these skills are having children do the fol- children develop muscle memory, which is
lowing activities: when repetition of one action allows that
· Pop bubbles on bubble wrap with just the index finger action to be performed almost automatical-
and thumb. ly without much effort. For example,
· Use an eyedropper to add colour to water pressing the correct buttons on video game
· Finger painting controllers can be difficult the first few
· Puzzles tries. But after playing the game a few
· Video games times, we tend to master the buttons on the
· Trace shapes or letters controller. Whether or not we can master
· Legos or building blocks the video game itself is a different story,
but it does become second nature to press
· Beading /Weaving
certain buttons to run or jump in the game.
· Ripping paper
· Using tweezers

Fine Motor Skills From Birth to Age Five

0 to 3 months
Grasping: The baby, Billy, can hold objects for a few sec- 1 ½ to 2 years
onds. An example is babies holding their parents' fingers. This is Billy can string large beads and imitate the drawing of circles
close to a fist grip. and lines.

3 to 6 months 2-3 years

Palmar grasp: This is also known as the fist gr ip. Billy can · Fold paper in half
hold an object for up to a minute, using the palm and fingers (the
whole fist).
· Draw straight lines and circles
· Imitate you drawing a cross
6 to 9 months · Turn single pages in a book
Inferior pincer grasp: Billy can pick up a small object, like a · Snip the edges of paper with scissors (by 30 months)
Cheerio, by putting the forearm on the table and using the side of
the thumb and the first fingers.
· Hold crayons using the thumb and fingers
· Use one hand more often than the other for most activities
9 to 12 months · Build a tower of up to 9 large blocks
Isolated index finger: Billy can point to an object using only · Put together large linking blocks, such as Megablocks
the index finger. · String ½ inch sized beads
Self-feeding: Billy can use finger s to eat a small piece of food.
· Use a fork to eat
12-15 months · Manage large buttons
Superior pincer grasp: Billy can pick up and r elease a small
4-5 years
object, like a Cheerio, by using the index finger and the thumb
without support of the forearm. At this point, he can also · Snip paper with scissors
turn the pages of a book, although sometimes turning many · Undo buttons and zippers
at once. · Hold crayon or pencil correctly
· Draw lines, shapes and a few
letters
15 months to 1 ½ years
Billy can hold a spoon or a crayon using the thumb, fingers, and
the palm.
 VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1 PAGE 3

Notable Accomplishments in Fine Motor Skill Development

Two popular terms that come up with learning about fine motor skills in children are fist grip and pincer
grip. An example of a fist grip is when children use their whole hand and wrap it around a pencil to write
their names. A pincer grip refers to the pinching muscles. Eventually, most children learn to use a pencil
with their thumb and one or two fingers, which indicates that they have developed the pincer grip.

What are Gross Motor Skills?

Gross motor skills ar e that involve balance and tivities, such as walking
movements that involve precise movements (i.e., in and out of a room.
using the large muscles skipping and hopping).
of the body. The devel- Other examples of gross
opment of gross motor Children rely on gross mo- motor skills include:
“Children rely on
skills starts as soon as a tor skills to engage in · Running
gross motor skills
child is born. As chil- physical play. For exam- · Climbing up a tree
to engage in
dren age, their gross ple, playing a game of tag · Throwing a baseball
physical play.”
motor abilities continue requires running after · Dribbling a basket-
to develop and improve. friends and reaching out ball
Boys usually develop and touching someone
gross motor skills much (gross motor skills). Chil-
sooner than girls, with dren also rely on gross mo-
the exception of skills tor skills for everyday ac-

How Do We Help
General Play- Encour age the bounce while walking; bounce child walk on tiptoes; walk on
child to engage in rough play in- with eyes closed; catch in a con- heels; walk fast, slow, backward,
doors or outdoors which involves tainer such as bleach bottle with or sideways; walk on stilts made
lots of running, jumping, hopping, the bottom removed; throw in a of large juice cans with a rope
skipping, tumbling, rolling, playing basket or at a target. through each can and held in the
on swings, playing on monkey Move different ways- Wheel- hands; leap frog; three legged
bars, riding a tricycle or bicycle, barrow Walk- Have the child races; etc.
Simon says, red light green light, “walk” on his/her hands while Obstacle Course- Put out a se-
hokey pokey, balancing, etc. his/her feet are held for him/ ries of games for the child to
Ball Play- The following activities her .Seal Walk- Encourage the complete in the sequence you
could be done with a large ball at child to “walk” on his/her hands establish and encourage him/her
first, proceeding to a smaller ball dragging his/her trunk and legs to complete the whole course
such as a tennis ball or a bean bag. behind him/her. Crab Walk- (from memory). Suggestions are
Throw; catch; bounce one or more Have the child “walk” on his jumping over an obstacle, climb-
times to another person; kick a sta- hands and feet in a sitting or ly- ing up and over something,
tionary or moving ball; roll; toss- ing down position. Duck Walk- crawling under a low object,
clap-catch; toss under leg-catch; Have the child walk with hands squeezing through a tunnel, slid-
bounce with one or two hands; on hips and squatting low to the ing down something, rolling,
bounce with alternating hands; floor. “Other Walks”- Have the hopping etc.
 Gross Motor Skills Development

0-4 months · Stand alone for three to five seconds

· Lift their heads for a short seconds · Hop on one foot one to three
time when they are placed on · Crawl or “bum” shuffle times
their tummies · Pull up to stand at furniture · Dress or undress with help
· Look at objects and the faces 24 months · Gallop five feet
of others · Walk backwards or sideways · Catch a large ball with out-
Kick legs while lying on their pulling a toy stretched arms
back 5 years
· Place self into a small chair
4-6 months · Gallop ten feet
· Play in squat position
· Roll over from back to tum- · Stop, start, and change direc-
my and tummy to back · Try to run
3 years tion smoothly when running.
· Place their foot in their · Do a somersault
mouth while lying on their back · Jump off the floor with both feet
· Kick a ball forward · Catch a tennis ball from five
· Use hands to reach, grasp, feet away using only their hands
bang, and splash · Stand on one foot for a few sec-
onds · Run while pumping their
· Support their own heads arms
Reach for toys · Walk up stairs using handrail
· Walk down the stairs inde-
12 months · Walk on the tip of their toes for a
pendently
· Walk holding onto your few seconds without falling
4 years · Climb playground equipment
hands or furniture
without difficulty
· Stand on one foot for at least five

Resources used: http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-are-fine-motor-skills-in-children-development-definition-examples.html#transcriptHeader

http://study.com/academy/lesson/what-are-gross-motor-skills-in-children-development-definition-examples.html,
http://www.kamloopschildrenstherapy.org/fine-motor-skills-toddler-milestones , ndds.ca ,, Pinterest.com , http://littlebinsforlittlehands.com/favorite-fine-motor-
ideas-book-tools-science-activities/