Pipe Cleaner Bead Lacing

This is an excellent activity for fine motor skills development as well as hand-eye coordination. We used pipe cleaners and beads that were purchased from a craft store but you can also get them at Wal-Mart. I poured some beads in a clear plastic cup and also put a bead at the bottom of each pipe cleaner and bent the bottom up to prevent the bead from falling off. The children then laced beads onto the pipe cleaner. For extension activities we counted how many beads were on the pipe cleaners and also made patterns with the beads.

Gemstone Sorting

This is another excellent activity for fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination, and visual discrimination. I purchased a bag of gemstone shapes and a clear bead organizer container from Michael's craft store. I used a hot glue gun to glue a gemstone shape at the bottom of each section of the bead container so the children would know where to put the gemstones that had to be sorted. I put the gemstones on a paper plate to make them easier to see and the children sorted them into the correct section of the container.

Wikki Stix

Wikki Stix are made of a combination of wax and yarn and can be used for many things. They are great for fine motor skill development because children use their fingers to shape ... bend ... cut the wikki stix to make a variety designs. Wikki stix can be used to form letters, numbers and shapes and anything else the child can imagine. I purchased the wikki stix at a craft store but you can also buy them online including at the official wikki stix site.

Block Counting and Stacking

Block counting and stacking is a wonderful way to build math skills ... fine motor skills ... and hand-eye coordination. You can use any kind of blocks that are stackable ... we used soft foam blocks but you can also use hardwood blocks. The children were given number cards and they selected a card and then counted and stacked the number of blocks that were on each card.

If you would like the cards we used for this activity you can downoad them here.

Block Stamping

Block stamping is an easy and fun activity that the children really love to do. We used both mega blocks and and legos along with paint (the blocks were super easy to clean after we were done with them). I put paint on paper plates along with a lego and a mega block for each color of paint. The children dipped the blocks in the paint and created their own patterns and designs.

Cereal Box Puzzles

Here is a great idea to put all of those empty cereal boxes to good use and build visual discrimination skills as well as hand-eye coordination at the same time. I cut the front off of empty cereal boxes (if you work with children you can ask the parents to donate their empty cereal boxes) and used a paper cutter (they sell them at craft stores and wal-mart for around 12.00) to trim the edges so they were nice and straight. I then cut the cereal box fronts up into various shapes and sizes and for the younger children I cut them in to 4-8 even sized pieces. I then stored the puzzle pieces in zip lock bags.

Craft Stick Pocket Counting

This is a fun activity to build math skills ... hand-eye coordination ... and fine motor skills. I took colored library pockets and glued a number onto the front of each one. I then set out craft sticks and the children had to put the correct number of craft sticks into each library pocket. I purchased the craft sticks from a local craft store ( I like to use the ones that are wider than the popsicle size craft sticks) ... I purchased the library pockets from my local teacher supply store which also has a website ( search for library pockets).

If you would like the cards we used for this activity you can downoad them here

Size Sequencing

Size sequencing is another activity that is great for building math skills. I cut ten circles (different sizes) out of construction paper (different colors) and the children arranged them from largest to smallest and then smallest to largest. They also counted how many circles there were. Another thing I did was remove circles from the pile and the children had to arrange them and figure out how many were missing.

If you would like the circle templates we used for this activity you can downoad them here

Foam Bead Matching

This is a great activity for building visual discrimination skills and well as eye-hand and fine motor skills. I purchased foam shape beads at the craft store and created a matching mat for the beads. I glued various beads in the top row on the matching mat and left the bottom row blank. The chidlren then put a bead in each blank square on the bottom row to match the top row of foam beads.

If you would like the foam bead matching mat we used for this activity you can downoad it here.

Roll-On Paint

Roll-on painting is another great creative art tool. I purchased the roll-on paint at Michael's craft store but you may also find them at school supply stores or you can even make your own by using empty (and washed out) deoderant bottles filled with paint. The roll-on paint bottles are easy to use and control and are also perfect for children to use for letter and number writing.

Triangular Crayons

Crayola has come out with a line of crayons and markers especially designed for children who are approaching 24 months and up called Crayola Beginnings. I purchased them at Wal-Mart and I also noticed that Michael's craft store carries them as well. The triangle shape makes it easier for children to grasp and control the crayons and allows for the children to develop a tripod grip which is important in emerging writing skills.

Pom Pom Sorting Bags

Pom Pom sorting is an easy and fun way to build cognitive skills as well as eye-hand coordination. I purchased a large bag of pom poms which contained five different sizes in a variety of colors from Michael's craft store. I also purchase white craft bags. I glued one pom pom (each a different size) on to five bags. I put some of the pom poms into a bowl with a large plastic spoon. The children used the spoon to scoop a pom pom and put it in the bag with the same sized pom pom on the front. Younger children can use their hands to grasp and pick up the pom poms instead of using the spoon. Instead of doing a size sort you can also do a color sort by attaching different colored pom poms to the bags and having children put the same colored pom poms into the bags. For an activity extension you can have children count the pom poms that they placed in each bag.

Add or Subtract Game

This game is a lot of fun for the children to play and is great for building math skills ...developing fine-motor skills ... as well as eye-hand coordination. I made game boards with sixteen squares on them that the children would add or subtract counters (we used hard beans) to depending on what number card they drew. The first player to fill all sixteen squares up on their game board wins. Children can also play this game by themselves.

If you would like the add or subtract game board and number cards we used for this activity you can downoad them here.

Craft Scissors

Free cutting is an excellent way for children to develop small motor skills along with scissor skills. To add variety to cutting with just plain scissors and paper I purchased a set of craft scissors from Wal-Mart. The set I purchased contained eight scissors each with a different cutting edge. You can also find these in craft stores usually near the scrapbooking section. Craft scissor will change the edge of the paper children cut ... instead of having straight lines they can have wavy or squiggly lines. Craft scissor are a little more difficult to use than beginning scissors as they require more effort to open and close which in turn helps build fine motor skills. The set of eight scissors was under nine dollars.

Bubble Wrap Painting

This is really a fun art activity that is great for eye-hand coordination and small motor skills development. You will need bubble wrap ... I purchased mine from Staples office supply store for 12.00 but Target also carries them. I recommend buying the bubble wrap with the larger bubbles as they are easier to paint and make a nicer design on the paper. The rolls of bubble wrap come perforated every twelve inches which is perfect for this activity. You will also need masking tape ... paint ... and paper.

We took a sheet of bubble wrap and taped it down (bubble side up) to the table using a piece of masking tape on the left and right side of the bubble wrap. The masking tape holds the bubble wrap down so the children do not have to worry about trying to hold the bubble wrap while painting. Children painted the bubbles and then put a sheet of paper on top of the bubbles. They gently rubbed the paper and lifted the paper off to see the design the painted bubbles had made.

Remember to closely supervise children under three and those children who put objects in theirs mouths as the bubble wrap can be a choking hazard if children put it in their mouths.

Book Recommendations

Here is a list of books I recommend for your early learning environment. These are the books that I most frequently use. If you would like to download the list you can do so here.

Name Puzzles

One of the first words children learn to recognize and read is their own name. Name puzzles are a great way to help children build early literacy skills and they are very easy to make. You will need a zip lock bag for each child as well as each child's name written in large letters on a piece of cardstock paper which should be laminated. I labeled the zip lock bags with each child's name and cut the laminated names into different pieces to make a puzzles. For younger children you would want to cut the names into fewer less complex pieces. I put the labeled puzzle bags in a basket in our literacy center for children to self-select. They enjoy finding their names and putting the puzzles together along with reading the names of their friends and putting together those puzzles. You can see a video of this teaching idea here.

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