6 Proven Activities For Improving Motor Skills In Children

By Kathleen Collins


It is important for a child to have normal milestones in order to fit into his or her social class and also make it easier for parenting. However, this does not happen to all children. Some have delayed milestones and will require professional tips on improving motor skills in children. Here are some of these tips that will transform how your kids adapt and learn.

Teach kids to play pincer-grasp games and activities. The target is the use of forefingers and thumb. These activities involve dropping and picking of items like scarves that are stashed onto a container holding baby wipes. You may also introduce your child to games that are played using knobs, switches and dials.

Reinforce the fill and dump game played by kids. Most parents will not appreciate when their kids remove all cloths from the bin and then attempt to return them. Such activities could be annoying but they demand the use of multiple muscles. Provide the toy bin or even one with cloths. Such activities will enhance movement, cognitive reasoning and concentration. You should also allow squeezing of water from sponges and retrieval of buried toys from the ground.

Let your child enjoy the stacking game. This involves the placing of blocks over each other. As the child moves, picks the blocks, identifies a position and places the block, a lot of learning is taking place. You can alter the complexity of the game depending on age and whether the skills have been mastered. Introduce more bricks and ensure that they interlock.

Encourage children to be more creative. Children will always desire to show their creativity by painting using crayons and finger paints. This will happen when the kid is as young as 15 months. Do not stop them from scribbling on the wall. In fact, you should provide chalks and finger paints to be used. The movements will enhance their ability and resulting images boost their confidence.

Allow your child to figure things out. This should be done as long as there is no danger or harm or damage. For instance, he or she could have started already with use of fork and spoon. Do not jump into helping. Let the kid figure out that food is falling off once it is scooped in a particular way and not the other. Once he learns on his or her own, there will be no turning back.

Focus on the use of both hands. Most children will begin with one hand unless an activity demands the use of the other. Dexterity will improve with time. Encourage your child to begin threading using both hands to teach him or her the art of coordination. There are games that require the use of both hands. Within a short time, you will have excellent results.

Admit and appreciate that there is something unique in each child. Each child has a different milestone. There are skills that he or she will master fast while others are slow. Encourage growth and improvement where little effort is required. Allow the child to grow naturally without worry or panic about some areas that are lagging behind. Children catch up eventually.




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