Motor Skill Development

Take our quiz to find out if you have the right expectations for your three- or four-year-old. ...

Heart Prints Activity for an individual child Age group: 18-40 months Duration of activity: 15 minutes Materials: Red and pink tempera paint Pie tins Kitchen sponges Scissors Clothespins White construction paper or bond paper This activity will ...

How can you tell whether your child's tiptoe walking is just a habit or indicates of a problem? ...

Fishing for Colors Activity for an individual child Age group: 30-40 months Duration of activity: 20 minutes Materials: 1 smooth stick or dowel rod 1 piece of string 2 feet long Small magnet Colored construction paper Scissors Paper clips This f...

Toe Wrestling Activity for two players Age group: 30-40 months Duration of activity: 10 minutes This lively game will help your child develop motor skills and balance. It is recommended that one of the players be an older child or adult who can ...

Print out and use this checklist to help in an initial diagnosis of Asperger's syndrome in your child. You can find more checklists on Asperger's syndrome here. ...

Kindergarten Prep: Name WritingThe step following mark-making is letter writing, creating symbols that are recognizable to you and to your child. Young children often make the most progress writing the letters in their name before writing any ot...

When it comes to screen time and kids, it isn't all bad news. The American Academy of Pediatrics offers guidelines on how to make screen time healthy and educational.

Fun Sign LanguageDirections Involve your child in making up signals with their hands, arms, and fingers. Each signal should stand for a word or expression. Keep it simple and see how many your child can come up with and remember. This could becom...

Tweezers and TongsMaterials Tweezers Kitchen tongs Variety of small and very small objects Empty egg cartonsDirectionsSelect various objects that require children to use tongs or tweezers to pick them up. Examples are: cereal, cut-up raw vegetabl...

Yoga ToadDirectionsPractice this activity with your child until you both perfect it. Squat on your heels and balance. Put the palms of your hands on the floor. How long can you balance there? Help by holding your child's hips up. Take small hops ...

Fine-Motor CoordinationFine-motor coordination involves the ability to control the small muscles of the body and is usually defined as the ability to coordinate the action of the eyes and hands together in performing precise manipulative movement...

Freeze and MeltDirections Have your child run freely around the space. When you say freeze or clap your hands, she must stop and remain absolutely still. When you say melt, your child can relax and start to move around again. Continue freezing an...

Let's Move!Directions:At an early age, children associate how they move to words that describe the movements they make. For example: run, lie down, stand up, walk. This activity will help your child build his movement vocabulary. Practice the fo...

Three to Six Years: Dietary and Developmental HighlightsAround three, children become increasingly social, more independent, and even more fun to be with than they were before. Preschoolers are particularly playful people who can be quite jovial ...

Batting BallsTime 5 to 10 minutes Materials Balloons Directions It will be a long time before your child has sufficient strength and hand-eye coordination to hit a ball with a bat, but this is an activity that can lead the way to that skill. Infl...

Are you worried about your kids being online? Fact Monster is a KidSafe-certified site for your kids to get homework help, play games and watch educational videos. Check it out...and give Same Game a try yourself!

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That Makes ThreeTime 5 to 10 minutes Materials 3 medium-sized items such as a washrag, yarn ball, small cup, or set of keys Directions Hand control is still developing, but with this activity you throw in decision making as well. Sit on the floo...