Pincer Grasp Activities For Kids To Develop Motor Skills

Each and every milestone plays an important role in the growth and development of children. One such important development is a pincer grasp. This development skill is essential for kids as it enhances their fine motor skills. A child may or may not develop a pincer grasp before they are a year old. Therefore, parents must be aware of ways to help children develop this important milestone.

In this article, we have discussed pincer grasp in length and have also mentioned some pincer grip activities for children. These are simple and fun activities that will keep your little one engaged.

Let’s take a look at pincer grasp activities for preschoolers and toddlers.

What Is Pincer Grasp And Why Is It Important?

When babies are of around 9-10 months old, they can hold things between their thumb and first finger. It is known as a pincer grasp. It is a very important fine-motor milestone for children. Usually, children use a pincer grasp to hold things and feed themselves. This helps kids to lay the foundation of having a good grip, such as a pencil grip, when they start writing.

Let’s look at the importance of a pincer grip for children.

• It helps children to pick up small things.
• It helps children to complete self-care tasks, like zipping, lacing, etc.
• It helps children to have proper control over writing and colouring.
• It helps children to hold cutlery for eating.

How Do You Teach A Child To Pincer Grasp?

Are you looking for some simple ways for teaching pincer grasp to your child? You have come to the right place. Below we have covered activities to encourage pincer grasp among kids. Let’s take a look at them.

Activities To Help Your Toddler To Develop Pincer Grasp

Here are some pincer grip activities for 3 year olds or toddlers:

1. Play With Building Blocks

What You Will Need

• Building blocks

Instructions

1. On a play mat, spread some building blocks in front of your child.
2. Encourage your kid to grasp the blocks and make something using the blocks.
3. Your child will try to explore the blocks while holding it.

2. Play Dough

What You Will Need

• Play dough

Instructions

1. Give your child play dough or clay to play with.
2. Ask them to make different shapes using the play dough.

3. Turn The Page

What You Will Need

• Baby books

Instructions

1. Place a child-friendly book in front of your child.
2. Give them time to explore the book.
3. Show them how to turn the pages of the book using a pincer grasp.

4. Sort The Pom Poms

What You Will Need

• Bucket
• Pom poms
• Tong

Instructions

1. Take a bucket and add pom poms of different colours to it.
2. Show your child how to hold the tong.
3. Give your child a tong and ask them to separate the pom poms according to the colours.

5. Pop Those Bubbles

What You Will Need

• Bubble Wrap

Instructions

1. Hand your child a bubble wrap and although they know what to do, if not, show them how to pop the bubbles.
2. A great pincer grasp activity for children.

Activities To Help Your Preschooler To Develop Pincer Grasp

Not just for toddlers, we have some fun and engaging pincer grasp games for preschoolers too. Let’s read about them.

1. String The Beads

What You Will Need

• Small beads of different colours
• String

Instructions

1. Tie the string at one end and give it to your child.
2. Ask your child to add beads to the string using their thumb and index finger.
3. Tie the string from the ends together to make a nice bracelet.

2. Pick The Stones

What You Will Need

• Empty container or bottle

Instructions

1. Take your child to a park.
2. Ask them to pick up different kinds of small stones they can spot and drop them in the bottle.
3. This will help them strengthen their grip.

3. Peel The Stickers

What You Will Need

• Geometric shapes sticker book
• Drawing sheet

Instructions

1. Get your child a sticker book with various geometric shapes inside.
2. Ask them to peel the stickers and paste them on a sheet to make something using these shapes.

4. Play With Pipe cleaners

What You Will Need

• Pipe cleaners

Instructions

1. Pipe cleaners are easy to be twisted and shaped.
2. Ask your child to twist the pipe cleaners to make geometric shapes like a square, a rectangle, etc.

5. Pinch The Clothespin

What You Will Need

• Clothespins

Instructions

1. Involve your child in everyday activities and strengthen their pincer grasp.
2. Ask them to put a clothespin on the clothes.
3. Pinching the clothespin to put on clothes will enhance their pincer grasp.

The pincer grasp is an important milestone for children. Parents must make sure that they are providing their little bundle of joy enough opportunities to practice their pincer grasp. The activities mentioned in this article will help the children to work on their pincer grasp skills and enhance them for future use.

Also Read:

How to Teach Colours To Toddlers & Preschoolers
Paper-Tearing Activities for Preschoolers and Children
Teaching English Alphabets To Toddlers and Preschoolers