fine motor skills--2 hands

[crl]

Hi,

You all have given me such great ideas in the past, so here I am again! Any suggestions for toys that help with using 2 hands for fine motor skills? DS is almost 28 months, but delayed with fine motor skills (OT once a week). He has a lacing snake, but I'd like to get him something else too.

Thanks!

[MarisaSF]

Not sure if this is considered "fine motor skills," but the Melissa and Doug cutting foods have been a big hit here. http://www.creativebrainsonline.com/melanddougcu.html

[brittone2]

Just some random ideas:
Shoelace and large beads (can buy them at Michaels or AC Moore)

If that's too hard, a pipecleaner and large beads. Can progress to smaller ones if DS is able.

Handmade idea is to take a coffee can, cut a slit in the lid (shaped like an "X"). Cut fabric into strips (you will want to play around with how wide to make them possibly). Coil up the fabric in the coffee can, poke one end out of the "X". Have DS pull the fabric out of the container. You can encourage hand over hand pulling. If you make the fabric strips a little wider and the X a little smaller, it will be more challenging and will work the hand muscles as well. You can play around with how hard to make this.

Folding paper, using one hand to stabilize and one hand to fold. See if he'll model you folding it horizontally, then vertically, etc.

If I think of more, I'll post some later :)

ETA: working with clay, playdough, silly putty, etc. Roll "snakes" or logs out out of the dough using two hands. Pull apart firmer "dough" like silly putty using two hands.

Pull apart something like the velcro food like Melissa and Doug using two hands and also cutting it as the PP mentioned.

If you ask your OT she'll probably have some great ideas for you and would be more than happy to suggest some activities since she knows your DS best of all :)

[crl]

Thank you both! I will ask the OT for more ideas. . . . so far she has only suggested using the lacing snake and unfortuantely I can only get DS to do that for a minute or two every other day or so. (I think part of the reason he's behind in fine motor is lack of interest.)

He LOVES numbers and I found some lacing numbers at www.kidsurplus.com They say for 3 and up but I think we'll give those a try. And I think he'd really like the fabric in a coffee can idea. Also, the cut up fruit is a good idea--anything to do with food is a hit around here.

Thanks again!

[brittone2]

Oh, these are good too...not sure about the brand itself, but the general idea...like giant snap beads. IT takes two hands to pull them apart, and fine motor skills and two hands to put them back together:
http://www.onestepahead.com/product/27190/302764/117.html (I don't know if this brand is good but maybe your OT would know).

Also something like pop onz...less frustrating than stacking blocks and they can still work on pulling apart and putting together using two hands
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B0006GBCK0/qid=1129427341/br=1-13/ref=br_lf_t_13//103-3208166-2735838?v=glance&s=toys&n=12945811

HTH. I'm sure your OT will have some great ideas.

Most kids like the fabric in a can thing...sort of reminscent of pulling tissues out of a box I think. I've seen older siblings enjoy this too which is weird, but for some reason they like it. If you want to make it more challenging you can also see if they'll stand on toes to reach for it etc. but from a fine motor standpoint you can work on pulling hand over hand and play around with varying sized Xs and fabric widths to make it challenging but not frustrating.

ETA: don't let them poke their fingers into the can as the "x" can kind of trap their fingers a bit and hurt a little to pull out.

Also wanted to add some of these ideas...again, it depends on what type of 2 handed activities the OT is really working on right now and where he is developmentally but some more ideas:

Peeling stickers off of backing (any sheet of stickers will do probably)

http://www.theraproducts.com/index/page-catalog/main-4785/sub-4892/ (lots and lots of lacing products)
http://www.theraproducts.com/index/page-catalog/main-4785/sub-4944/ (something like the 9 hole pegboard means they have to stabilize with one hand and use the other to do something very fine motor)
http://www.theraproducts.com/index/page-catalog/main-4785/sub-5035/ (something like the "rapper snapper" although I don't remember how difficult they are to use.)
http://www.theraproducts.com/index/page-catalog/main-4785/sub-5082/ (vehicle pop beads, possibly the magic muffe although again, I don't know how difficult this activity is IRL)

Some of these may be too hard...my PT background doesn't make me a fine motor expert by any stretch. You could talk some of these over with the OT and she could probably tell you if they are too difficult for the near future or if she doesn't feel they are appropriate for your DS's needs.

[August Mom]

I'm not sure if he's old enough at 28 months, but DS really enjoys the Lauri Locktagons.

(This may not be the best site to buy these, but you can see a picture): http://www.liveandlearn.com/lauri/locktagons.html

[mudder17]

What about those wooden toys that have a pole in the center and donuts that go over the pole. DH has two versions of these (one with three poles and one with one) and she loves playing with them. But I find that she can do it easily (and has) but that some of her friend's fine motor skills are not as good (but they tend to be really good at stuff like climbing, which Kaya isn't really into) have more difficulty with it. I would guess it would be a good way of developing better control. Oh, and a fun game: Kaya is learning to take them off with her feet or try to put them on--she was looking at them and picked one up between her feet and tried to do it for some odd reason. OS I imitated her and showed her how I could take them on and off with my feet and she thought it was hilarious. Anyway, it's a fun toy to play together with your child.

We also have the wooden needle/shoelace toy where you thread a wooden block with various holes and as you said, she doesn't play with that one for more than a couple minutes.

Oh, one other toy that she seems to enjoy is the Lego bucket sorter. Here's the latest reincarnation, which I would love, but it wasn't available in the US at the time I got the other one:

http://shop.lego.com/product.asp?p=5461

She enjoys stacking the blocks, although she couldn't do that well until recently. I think it's been a good way to develop her fine motor control in a way that is not too frustrating. I'm currently working with her (this is not an issue of motor control, but of spatial understanding, I think) on figuring out how to rotate the block so that it will fit through the hole properly. When she finally figures that out, I'll work with her on figuring out which hole to put each block in (right now she's trying each one--usually the last one she used successfully--and I will sometimes point at the correct hole and then work with her to try rotating it the correct way).

Eileen

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/candle.gif for Leah
http://www.gynosaur.com/assets/ribbons/ribbon_emerald_18m.gif

http://tickers.baby-gaga.com/t/catcatcvi20040222_4_Kaya+is.png
Kaya's a cousin! 10/1/05, 5lb13oz

[crl]

Thanks for all the great ideas! I really appreciate the help.

[redhookmom]

Check this page out. There is a list of activities as well as a link to toys.
http://www.coe.iup.edu/njyost/DI/Fine_Motor/