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New Ways to Play with Playdough
I was beginning to think there wasn't anything new we could do with Playdough until one day, just by accident, my kids discovered something new and fun to do with it. To back up a little bit, I've been struggling with projects lately. The kids (4 and 3) are growing up and as they do, they really love to ride their bikes, do bubbles, and mostly they are loving playing outside with their neighborhood friends.
Then one morning they woke up early and we had to think of something since everyone else was still sleeping. We got out the Playdough and before I knew it, the kids were rooting through our craft bag for ideas and they came up with this:
They used their little hands to roll out a snake and then they meticulously stuck that snake with pins. It took them a long time before they got tired of this game and I was glad because I knew that Little Buddy (3) especially needed the fine motor skills practice, so the he can learn to hold his crayons correctly eventually. His gross motor skills are doing great with all his time at the park and on his bike, but he hasn't had the patience lately to work on fine motor skills. I don't worry too much about it, since I know he has lots of time, but whenever I can sneak in a little fine motor skills, I always do! Even Munchkin Girl (4) found this to be challenging and she had fun with this for at least 20 minutes before she ran to the front window to look for her friends.
Other ways to practice fine motor skills include:
- Pouring sand, water, salt, sugar, rice, or beans using bowls, funnels, spoons, cups, tubes, rolls, colander
- Sorting small objects with interesting textures like cotton balls, pastas, sponges, and rocks placing them into egg cartons
- Pushing objects through a slot like pennies or buttons into a Piggy Bank or container with a slit in lid; pushing pegs into a board
- Picking up marbles and putting them in a jar; for variety, have child stand up and drop marbles into jar or drop balls or other small objects into container or sack
For more ideas on how other great fine motor practice and why it's so important, don't forget to check out my book, The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble, and Motivated to Learn!
This book has been a best-seller on Amazon and has some really wonderful reviews from readers just like you!
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Very cute. I love how kids can create things out of almost nothing sometimes.
ReplyDeleteOMG, you're letting your preschoolers play with PINS?!? (LOL, just kidding.) I'm actually thinking of teaching my 4- and 5-yos how to sew on a button, just for fun (but good life skill for a guy, right?).
ReplyDeleteThat looks like fun. I will have to try that when ours are a little bit bigger.
ReplyDelete: 0 ) Theresa (Capri + 3)