Image: Catalog Spree
When developing curriculum, daycare providers must include age-appropriate activities for young children that develop fine motor skills. This Easter photo magnet craft will support a creative arts unit as well as promote visual motor coordination, bilateral coordination, and hand strength.
Fine motor skills are actions that involve the small movement of hands, wrists, feet, fingers, toes, tongue, and lips. In contrast with gross motor skills which involve larger muscles of the arms, legs and feet, fine motor skills focus on small muscle movements in coordination with the eye. Some important fine motor concepts and skills that preschool age children learn to master are bilateral coordination, visual motor coordination, grasp, hand use, manipulation skills, pincer grasp, wrist rotation, pre-writing grasp, hand strength, and tactile awareness.
Children learn fine motor skills through practice. Activities which involve writing, drawing, cutting, stringing, and buttoning are great examples of activities that promote the development of fine motor skills. The Easter Photo Magnet Craft activity includes the preparation instructions, procedures, and materials list for this activity. It also provides age-appropriate learning objectives and a sample of the simple supporting verbal cues necessary to encourage participation and support learning.
Easter Photo Magnet Materials
For each child you will need:
Cardstock
Coloring crayons, paint, and markers
Embellishments such as glitter, stickers, and stamps
Photo
Magnets
Scissors
Glue
Laminating sheets
Activity Preparation
- Draw egg shapes on card stock for each child
- Cover the table with butcher paper or newspaper
- Place all materials on the activity table.
Easter Photo Magnet Activity Procedures
- Invite the children over to the craft area and explain that they can make a magnet for Easter out of their own photo.
- Encourage the children to cut out his egg and then ask the children to paint, color, and embellish their eggs.
- Allow to dry completely.
- Give each child a photo of themselves which has been cut into a oval shape that is smaller than the egg.
- Show the children how to glue the photo onto the front of the egg.
- Laminate the egg with do-it-yourself laminating sheets.
- Glue the magnet to the back of the egg.
Learning Objectives
Objective 1: To provide the opportunity for increased visual-motor coordination by using scissors to cut curved lines.
Verbal Cue A: Can you cut eggs shape out of your art paper?
Verbal Cue B: I like how using your scissor to cut the egg.
Objective 2: The child will practice spontaneity in materials usage.
Verbal Cue A: Which color glitter would you like to choose?
Verbal Cue B: I like how you choosing to decorate your egg.
Objective 2: To practice cooperation and sharing through the sharing of art materials.
Verbal Cue A: Can you let Jill use the glitter when you are finished with it?
Verbal Cue B: I like the way you are sharing the stickers, Sarah.
Children in your child day care center will create a unique work of art while enhancing their fine motor skills.
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