Fine Motor Skills for School Readiness

I was sitting in my dermatologist’s office watching her write notes in my chart.  

“Wow!  Is that how you hold a pencil?”  I asked her.

“Yes, I know, I have a terrible grip, but somehow I’ve adapted.” She replied.

“Does your hand get tired when you write notes?”  I asked her with my eyebrows scrunched up.

“Actually, now that you ask, yes, my hand does.  I prefer to type on the computer.”

Not wanting to sound like a know-it-all, I explained to her that I teach kindergarten and we focus a lot on pencil grip.  I told her that she had a fisted grip.  

Fisted grip

She didn’t seem too interested in what I was saying, so I backed off a bit.

I teach a human development course at the college level. When we get to fine motor skills, I like to show images of the different grips and explain why it’s important especially for teachers and parents to notice when a child’s grip is wrong and how to fix it.  

Types of pencil grips

What my dermatologist didn’t know was, she was using the grip that we typically outgrow by 2 years old.  I can’t imagine how she got through school using that grip without a teacher noticing and trying to correct it.  

Let me backup a bit and define fine motor skills. 

“Fine motor skills are the ability to make movements using the small muscles in our hands and wrists.”

I tell my students the thumb and pointer finger hold your pencil.  They can slightly rest the pencil on the middle finger, but that should slowly go away by age 7.  The middle, ring and pinky fingers are for gross motor skills like throwing a baseball.  

Working on his grip

Tying shoes is next on my list of things that would be fan-freakin’-tastic for kids to master before kindergarten.  I can’t tell you how many hours of my life have gone to tying my students’ shoes.

Practice, practice, practice.  I can’t stress this enough.  When kids get frustrated, take a break and come back to it.  When they finally master this skill, kids love to help other kids tie shoes.  Let me tell you, those kids are always getting extra “I helped a friend” Class Dojo points.

Teachers - you can make this a station during literacy time at the beginning of the year!

Zipping coats and pants and buttoning buttons is a major fine motor skill that comes in super handy with kindergartners.  

It’s expected that your child is potty trained by kindergarten, but don’t take for granted that means they are proficient at buttoning up their pants or zipping zippers.  Just like shoe tying, zipping zippers should be something your child practices.  If they can zip their own coat by winter time, then they are rocking it.  I’ve had a few students that get so frustrated that they literally throw a tantrum because they can’t zip their own coat.  Don’t let that be your kid.

I know it’s easier to just zip or button for them, but they need to learn and build the stamina in those fine motor skill muscles.  

These are just a few of the fine motor skills I recommend as a kindergarten teacher for your child to master before school starts.  If they’re still working on these things when that time rolls around, that’s okay!  Be encouraging and give praise when they do any of these fine motor skill activities independently! 

If you’re looking for a simple guide for everything your child need to know BEFORE kindergarten, CLICK HERE.

The Kindergarten Readiness Tool Kit is a great way to check your kiddo’s skill before they go to school.

And remember, let your kiddo practice. If they get frustrated, take a break and come back to it.

If you haven’t grabbed my FREE guide to start your tutoring business, grab it HERE! I give you the first 10 steps to start making an extra $1,000 a month!

You can practice fine motor skills with pre-k and kindergarten tutoring clients!

Teachers - what fine motor skills do you wish your students have mastered before school? Tell me in the comments!