Fine Motor and Gross Motor Skills

Fine and Gross Motor Movement

The preschool years are filled with opportunities for children to naturally work on their motor skills. Whether inside or outside, our students constantly refine their motor skills through play. They walk, run, hop, skip, jump, climb, throw, kick, pump, peddle, crawl, slither and slide. They pinch, grasp, write, paint, cut, button, and zip. 
Activities such as getting dressed to go outside in the winter allow the students to use both gross and fine motor skills at the same time. Balancing on one leg while stepping into snowpants or boots is quite challenging for 3, 4, and 5 year olds. Pulling snow pants over boots, putting mittens on, and zipping coats all offer challenged for them as well. The preschool staff encourages our students to perform activities independently as much as possible, even when it means taking longer to get ready, making a mess, or getting a bit frustrated the kids, not us 😉). We talk them through tasks and help them through frustrating times. When the make a mess while doing tasks like pour milk, we help them learn how to clean up their own messes. One of our biggest goals in preschool is to foster independence!

Check out this link:
The Importance of Fine and Gross Motor Skills in Early Childhood - Kids First

And check out some pictures of our preschoolers preforming some of the fine and gross motor skills that they are learning:

Fine Motor


Learning to use scissors (holding them correctly, cutting on the lines...)




Writing, using different writing utensils 




 

Dressing skills: buttoning, buckling, zipping





Squeezing a pipette


Using tweezers to improve their pincer grip 


Clipping and lacing


Gross Motor

Yoga: 
full body strength, flexibility, core strength, balance






Southworth Park:
Walking, climbing, digging, running, jumping, swinging...



 


Outdoor play in our playground: 
Walking, running, climbing, crawling, peddling, swinging, jumping, pumping - 
strength, balance, coordination...










Winter outdoor play:
More walking, running, climbing, crawling, peddling, swinging, jumping, pumping - 
strength, balance, coordination... but in snow gear and on slippery ground






Gym: 
Peddling, running, walking, jumping, building, rolling...







 














 

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