Development of fine motor skills in preschool children through games and play exercises

Fine motor skills - what is it and how does it affect the child’s condition?

Imagine picking up a tennis ball and a grain of rice. Agree, it’s much easier and faster to grab the ball: close your fingers and you’re done. Whether it’s raising a small grain, you need to get used to it, pick up and hold this crumb.

It's all about physiology . The human hands are equipped with a large number of muscles, both large and small. We train large muscles every time we make any movements with our hands and fingers. But small muscles “rest” and do not develop until we begin to make small and precise manipulations.

Give a baby a coin - he will clutch it in his palm, no matter how interesting it is to him. But a four or five year old child will be able to pick it up with his fingers and carefully examine it. This simple difference is the effect of developed fine motor skills.

So, fine motor skills are the degree of development of the small muscles of the hands, which are used for precise and small movements. Then why develop it?

The excitement around fine motor skills began quite a long time ago, when M. Montessori, V.A. Sukhomlinsky, A.R. Luria discovered an interesting relationship: children with delayed speech development could not work with small objects, while children with a normal level of development actively used them.

This discovery became an impetus for other research in the fields of psychology, pedagogy and physiology. As a result, it was discovered that the accuracy of performing small manipulations is associated with the work of the speech parts of the brain, consciousness, thinking, spatial orientation, memory and vision.

Accordingly, by working on a child’s fine motor skills, you not only develop small hand muscles, but also train his brain, use the visual, skeletal, muscular, and nervous systems. Not a bad bonus for a caring parent, right?

WHAT METHODS IS BETTER TO CHOOSE

To successfully adapt to school, your child must come to first grade prepared. To do this, you need to take a large-scale approach to developing his abilities. In addition to fine motor skills, it is also necessary to train logical thinking, memory, and expand creativity. A technique that copes well with this task, and also teaches children to quickly count in their heads, is mental arithmetic.

It is based on calculations on special accounts - the abacus. First, kids learn to move the abacus bones, master the operating principle of this instrument, and later try to perform simple mathematical operations on them. When this method of calculation no longer causes difficulties, children learn to imagine the abacus in their minds and count on it. Over time, skills are honed, and kids show amazing results, because they manage to make calculations even faster than adults do on a calculator.

The key feature of mental arithmetic is the simultaneous use of two hemispheres of the brain: the left, which allows you to think logically and analytically, and the right, which is responsible for creativity and creativity. Such a diverse load makes the human brain work more productively, which has a positive effect on a variety of areas of intelligence:

Memory and memorization are trained, as well as skills in working with information.
logical thinking and analytical abilities develop.
Creative potential expands and creative thinking develops.
the reaction speed increases, allowing you to more quickly respond to tasks and solve them faster.
Concentration improves, which greatly helps to maintain attention in school lessons.
interhemispheric connections are formed, allowing you to study more effectively at school and at home.

In addition, mental arithmetic is an excellent fine motor skills trainer and a means of learning how to quickly count in your head without using a calculator. The advantages that this technique provides make it one of the most effective programs for the development of children of preschool and school age.

Learning mental arithmetic is a great way to prepare for school. The motor and intellectual development of the child, which can be achieved through this program, will become an important basis for later life. Mental arithmetic skills will be preserved forever, which means that even in adulthood, this technique will again and again help you achieve success in any endeavor.

How to check the level of development of fine motor skills in your child?

To find out whether your child's developmental level is normal, look at his behavior. So, it is absolutely normal if the child is:

For 2-3 months he reaches out to things with his hands, grabs himself and those around him by the fingers.
3-6 months can skillfully place toys in his mouth, examine his hand movements, and can purposefully grasp objects the size of his fist.
8-12 months can transfer a small object from hand to hand, put small objects into large ones, and pick up small objects using the thumb and index finger.
12-14 months old can draw doodles, turn all the pages of a book at once, and unwrap objects wrapped in cloth or paper.
1-1.5 years puts cube on cube, unscrews small screw caps, assembles pyramids from rings.
1.5-2 years holds two objects with one hand, turns the pages of a book one at a time, places 3 cubes on top of each other
2-2.5 years Unbuttons and fastens large buttons, Velcro, can push and pick up small objects from a flat surface.
2.5-3 years old draws with fingers, knows how to string beads on wire, wields scissors, collects cereal with a spoon.
3-3.5 years draws a straight line and a dotted line, sculpts balls and sausages from plasticine, fastens and unfastens all types of locks, buttons, Velcro, etc.
4-5 years old holds a pencil correctly and draws complex shapes (hexagon, star, heart), strings beads on a thread, and ties knots.
5-6 years old folds paper several times, identifies small objects by touch, catches a ball in flight.
6-7 years old has the skills to work with pens and pencils, draws small details, catches a small ball with one hand, braids hair.

If you notice that your child cannot cope with normal manipulations for his age, do not despair - you can easily catch up and even surpass the norm in a couple of months if you work daily on improving motor skills at home.

Age

Pediatricians recommend starting conscious daily training with a child who is 4-5 years old. But at an earlier age, fingers need to be given attention - massage, kneading active points that are directly connected to the brain centers.

So, for the youngest (up to 2 years old) the following exercises can be used:

stroking the palm;
flexion-extension of fingers;
clapping your hands.

To make the child have fun, the lesson should be accompanied by reading nursery rhymes about the White-sided Magpie and playing “Ladushki”.

If a child attends kindergarten, then teachers in the younger group conduct classes on the development of fine motor skills, but for parents this is not a reason to refuse home training, which will help consolidate the acquired skills and translate them into skills. Therefore, on weekends you need to work with your baby using a playful form, offering him new interesting tasks.

Ways to develop fine motor skills

To improve fine motor skills, you don’t need to do tedious training and boring activities - all exercises are done in a light playful and entertaining way that will help brighten up your child’s leisure time.

Massage

Massage can be practiced to develop motor skills of both the youngest children and older schoolchildren. It is advisable to massage and stretch your hands before starting the main exercises.

Warming up the palms and hands can be done without the help of foreign objects; for this you just need to massage, rub and pinch the palms and bend the baby’s fingers. In this case, you can recite various rhymes or simply pronounce all the actions. Over time, the child will learn to do this warm-up without outside help.

You can also use improvised means: pencils, balls, small hard toys. Objects need to be rolled between the palms, inserted between the fingers and fixed in certain positions.

You can build improvised “pools”: containers with sand, cereals, lids or small balls. In this pool, the baby must lower his hands and move them, move the filler elements with his fingers, and mix the contents.

These exercises allow you to warm up your muscles and increase blood flow. Pink palms and fingers serve as a signal that the exercise has been performed well and that you can move on to the next one.

Finger games

Such games involve the child using his hands and fingers to depict certain objects, thereby developing coordination of movements.

Glasses . The child can make circles first with the whole fist, and then only with the thumbs and forefingers, bring the “glasses” to the eyes, etc.
Chair and table. Using a fist and palm, a chair is depicted, then the position of the hands changes. Then the chair can be depicted with one hand.
Boat . The palms are folded into a handful and the “boat” begins to travel, carrying “passengers” - small toys that need to be held or caught.
Scissors . By pretending to be scissors with the fingers of one hand, the baby “cuts” first the soft tissue, and then harder objects.

Lacing and dress up games

In stores you can buy special development books with fastening elements: zippers, Velcro, buttons, rivets, laces, etc. If desired, you can make them yourself. Working with such educational books, the child will not only develop fine motor skills, but also learn to dress faster.

Children are also offered special embroidery kits that use laces instead of threads. So a child can make crafts, “sew” handbags, wallets, etc. Girls especially like these toys.

Finger paint

It is difficult for young children to draw with brushes, watercolors or gouache, but this is not a reason to put drawing on the back burner. Special finger paints are now sold in stores: they do not contain harmful substances, which means that even if the baby swallows a little dye, nothing bad will happen.

Let the baby first get acquainted with paints and make prints of his fingers and palms. Next, teach him to draw lines and circles. With children 3-4 years old, you can already start drawing animals, houses, cars. Gradually, finger paints should be replaced with regular ones, and fingers with brushes.

Applications

Older children can engage in this type of creativity: from the age of 4-5, children can cut out figures from paper and cardboard, which means they can start practicing. Try to use not only paper, but also small unusual details: cereals, seeds, napkins, pebbles, sticks, etc. Crafts should be voluminous and detailed.

Ideas for creativity:

tree with true leaves;
fish with scales in the form of rhinestones;
flowers made from rolled napkins;
lamb made from rice or semolina;
hedgehog with needles made from sunflower seeds.

If you can’t spend time coming up with the next project, purchase special quilling kits. Working with small tapes and pieces of paper also effectively develops small arm muscles.

Modeling

Plasticine of varying hardness, clay, dough and kinetic sand can be used as modeling material. It’s worth starting with softer and more pliable materials.

Children aged 2-4 years should be taught to roll sausages, balls and other basic shapes. Older children can already be trusted to create a real picture from plasticine. At 6-7 years old, children can already create real figurines with small details, so you can get your child interested in creating clay figurines.

Such classes allow you to broaden your horizons and gain knowledge about the color, shape, size and texture of the material.

Origami and other activities with paper

With paper and cardboard, a child can do more than just draw. You can invite him to cut and glue various appliqués, make paper beads, weave from strips of paper, glue various figures, and also make origami crafts.

To ensure that the little student does not lose interest in work, it is important that the classes constantly change and the goals become more complex. For example, you should start with simple airplanes and boats, and then move on to cranes, tigers and more complex figures.

Shadow play

Shadow theater can be a great family activity. To begin with, you should build and decorate the stage together with your child. Performances can begin with manual theater, when a child depicts an animal or object with his hands, and parents or friends guess. At first, these will be simple images that can be easily composed with your fingers: a bunny, a dog, a bird. Then you can act out entire scenes with more complex characters.

Next, you can make special figurines for the finger theater - paper caps in the form of characters from the play. At first, it is better to act out scenes from familiar fairy tales, in which there is a lot of dialogue: “The Three Little Pigs”, “The Fox and the Hare”, “Teremok”. As your child masters the skill of controlling his fingers, you can turn to your favorite cartoons.

So, with one idea you can keep your child occupied for several months, develop his motor skills, as well as artistic qualities.

Tasks with elements of writing

Six-year-olds can be occupied with more professional activities that will help them prepare for school and writing . You can purchase special coloring books with different types of shading. You can also offer decals in which you need to trace the contours of various objects using stencils.

Visual and auditory dictations are especially interesting for preschoolers, when the child needs to draw a picture following a spoken or drawn algorithm. Such activities influence the development of the child’s perseverance and attention.

There are such a large number of activities aimed at developing the small muscles of the hands that they are enough to fill the entire leisure time of the baby. Use your imagination, buy special games or books and move on to improving your fine motor skills!

Most popular games

The game catalog contains a huge number of options. We offer some simple finger games that are loved by most children.

Squeeze all the fingers on both hands, then unclench them. Run several times.
Squeeze the fingers on your right hand and unclench them one by one. Repeat the exercise with the left.

To make it interesting for the child, during the lesson the parent can read funny poems to him or write a story about how a fairy-tale character (a bear) got home with the help of finger movements. For example: the bear passed the first forest - extend one finger. The bear passed the second forest - we unbend the second one. The child will try to do the exercise to find out how the fairy tale ends.

"Fan". The exercise is useful for the fingers; it is performed like this: press your fingers together (imitating a closed fan), then spread them as wide as possible (the fan has opened), and wave your hand.
A very good exercise that helps develop not only motor skills, but also attention and reaction speed - “Scratch-scratch”. The parent places his hand on the table, the baby places his palm on the adult’s palm and listens to him. Mom or dad tells a poem or a fairy tale, the child’s task is to be attentive. As soon as “tsap-scratch” is heard (this can be any other phrase discussed in advance), he needs to remove his palm as quickly as possible, otherwise the parent will cover it with his other hand. After a few practices, parent and baby can switch roles.
"Butterfly". First, the fingers are clenched into a fist, now you need to straighten the little finger one at a time, then the ring and middle fingers. Create a ring from the index finger and thumb. The butterfly is ready. Now you need to ask the child to “flap his wings” - make movements with straight fingers.

If one of the finger games causes difficulty, you can replace it with another for a while; you should not torment your child with a mandatory mindset for success.

Helping mom and developing or training for the lazy

You can work on improving the coordination of small and precise hand movements while doing everyday activities. So, the baby does not distract his parents, is busy with something that is interesting to him and benefits from it. If this prospect makes you happy, remember our recommendations so that you can apply them in your everyday life next time.

In the kitchen

Agree, when there is no one to leave the child with, the cooking process turns into a complete ordeal. The baby strives to spend time with you, completely not appreciating the dangerous proximity to fire, sharp or hot objects. Try to keep your mischievous child busy - hand him a jar of buckwheat, rice, millet or any other cereal and ask him to sort through the grains, separating out the debris. To stimulate interest, you can assign a special prize or reward.

As a result, you get a wagonload of advantages: the child is busy and does not interfere with cooking, the cereals are sorted and cleaned, another training session on the baby’s motor skills is carried out.

It will also be useful if the baby performs simple manipulations: peeling tangerines, salting ready-made dishes, adding sauces, sorting cutlery - in general, doing those basic tasks that you can trust him with.

In bathroom

Are morning or evening preparations not enjoyable for your child? Invite him to help you and speed up the waiting minutes. Entrust your baby with an important mission - to open all the jars, boxes and tubes that you will need to use, then close and put them back in place. This way you can satisfy your child’s natural interest and teach him how to quickly handle different types of containers.

In wardrobe

Clothes carry a large cognitive and developmental load for the baby: this includes a large number of parts and fastenings that you need to learn to handle, and a variety of fabrics that are very useful to study by touch.

To begin, invite your child to help you sort and fold things. Let the mother put away the adults' wardrobe items, and the child - his own. Teach him the correct techniques and algorithms and enjoy his little helper as he improves his fine motor skills.

It is also worth encouraging your child to dress himself. Allocate more time for this, give your child the necessary clothes and teach them how to put them on. At first, let these be lightweight items of clothing without buttons, locks or rivets. When the baby begins to easily cope with T-shirts, loose pants, socks and sweaters, move on to more complex things. Daily repetition of such training will allow you to master the skills of dressing yourself and improve coordination of movements.

You will be surprised how in a couple of months the baby, whom you should have worked with in your free time, turns into your mother’s little assistant, deftly using his fingers.

First lessons with objects

Having learned the basic games with fingers, you can move on to the next step - practicing with objects. For the little ones, such developmental exercises will be useful.

Working with a pencil and small hair ties. The parent holds a pencil in his hand. The child’s task is to put several small rubber bands on him one after another.
Drawing with semolina. The parent pours a thin layer of cereal onto a flat plate or cutting board, inviting the baby to run his finger over it. You will get a line. In the same way, the child draws several stripes on the semolina.
Laying out the beans. The mother gives the baby a small handful of beans (beads or buttons can replace them). The preschooler is required to lay it out on the table in piles or make a path.
Working with beads, stringing large elements. They can be replaced with pasta pre-dyed in different colors.
Working with buttons. The parent draws a circle on a piece of paper. The child is given instructions to arrange buttons, paper clips, and beans along its contour.
Children love to imitate adults, and this should be used in organizing classes. So, the mother can invite the baby to stir the sugar in his tea himself.
"Firework". The baby’s task is to tear a sheet of paper into as small pieces as possible and fold them on the table. Then these scraps are held in the hands and tossed, like a real fireworks display.

The main rule is to practice every day, but do not force the baby. Training should bring joy, not irritation.

Instructions for parents

It would seem that there are so many opportunities for improvement, but how to choose the appropriate methods and activities? So that you can confidently make the right choice, our psychologists have compiled a number of tips and recommendations.

Exercise with your child . Joint activities will not only strengthen relationships, but will also help the child cope with tasks with greater efficiency.
Conduct your classes systematically . To achieve good results, the baby should exercise at least 1 time a day. If you periodically skip training, try to replace the games your child is accustomed to with educational games.
Classes should be engaging, not boring . To do this, you need to choose the optimal duration of training for your child - as soon as he starts to get tired, stop training. Change tools and activities, include elements of play and creativity in your work.
Encourage your child's creative activity , let him come up with some exercises himself - it will be easier for you.

Rules for performing finger exercises

Working with the baby on the development of fine motor skills should be carried out on a regular basis, but not tire the child. The easiest way to do it is with finger games, which perfectly stimulate the brain and help develop dexterity, attention, and memory. The work is carried out first with the right hand, then with the left. An adult is required to monitor the correct execution of the movements, so before showing them to a child, you need to practice yourself.

Advice
You should start with 2-3 repetitions of each exercise, gradually increasing them to 5-8. Training is carried out daily, and a few minutes a day is enough.

Didactic manuals advise: if the child gets tired, the lesson can be broken up. Do the first two exercises in the morning, two more in the afternoon, and one in the late afternoon.

Didactic toys and their role in the process of working on motor skills

Any educational toy is designed for learning, but it must be colorful, attracting attention and the desire to play with it.

TOP 10 most popular educational toys for fine motor skills:

Educational mats. They have different surfaces: “grass”, “thorns”, “hard stones”, “soft stones”, “cones”, etc. The child will also be interested in musical rugs, where steps and paths are drawn. For older children, you can find rugs that fit together like puzzles. They often have letters or numbers on them.
Figures on magnets. The surface of the refrigerator is a wonderful and favorite “field of action” for a little explorer. There are many refrigerator magnets; you can choose them according to your child’s age. Very young children will begin to develop the skill of moving magnets and learning the names of animals. Older children are interested in learning letters and numbers, building syllables and words.
Play dough or polymer clay. Here the child expresses himself. Modeling massages the fingertips, improves tactile sensitivity, and develops imagination. A child learns to sculpt geometric figures. It is not recommended to give regular plasticine to small children; a special one is sold for them - “modeling dough”.
Kinetic sand. Consists of quartz sand and synthetic additive E900. It is absolutely safe, more flexible than usual, does not dry out and does not stick to your hands. You can use it to build figures, castles and much more. Sand comes in different colors.
Easels and drawing boards. All children love to draw, regardless of skill. There are 2-in-1 easels with a chalk board and a magnetic board on which you can draw with felt-tip pens and immediately erase them.
Mushroom screw. A very simple toy on which you can trace the entire process of screwing a mushroom with a screw head into a leg with a hole. At the same time, manual dexterity is perfectly trained, and the muscles of the hand and wrist are strengthened. For older children, you can buy construction sets where you can assemble cars, houses, airplanes and much more using small bolts and nuts.
By the age of 3, mosaics are of interest. To begin with, the child needs to be shown how to build a house or a flower; in the future, he will delight you with his own inventions, which at first may not represent anything specific. You can add puzzles. Start with a small number of elements (from 6 pieces), large in size.
Laces. They help develop perseverance, logic, and improve the eye and flexibility of the hand. You can start after a year, for example, putting multi-colored pasta on a thread or wooden toys, sewing on a button (with a wooden needle), trying to lace in different ways (stitches, crosses).
Lego type constructor. This toy delights kids of any age. There are many benefits from it - it trains modeling and design skills, creativity, memory, observation and attentiveness. The game is bright and attractive. Construction is the easiest way to develop a child’s spatial thinking, motor skills, creative abilities and voluntary actions. The Lego collection has a variety of models - from fire engines and ambulances, boats to entire islands and cities.
Finger Theater. This toy will help develop all the fingers on both hands, strengthen the hand (which prepares for writing), improve imagination, thinking, memory, stimulate the speech apparatus, and help better navigate space.

As you can see, there are a huge variety of games, toys and tasks for developing fine motor skills in children. Remember, the more developed the hands, the smarter your child is.

When getting to know the world, the baby works, and does not passively contemplate. With this he lays the foundation for his first knowledge. Do not scold him when he fails, and do not use him as an example for others. He will succeed too.