Motor skills are movements our bodies make to perform various tasks. When we talk about helping infants and toddlers build motor skills, we are talking about helping them develop their big and small muscles that help with daily tasks. For example, when babies learn to crawl and walk, they build gross motor skills. A toddler learning how to pinch things is developing their fine motor skills.
For parents, once their babies start crawling and walking, it opens the door for so many new motor skills activities! To help we’ve put together a list of fun and easy indoor play ideas to help infants and toddlers build their motor skills.
Gross motor skills involve big muscle groups, such as arms and legs. Infants and toddlers develop gross motor skills as they grow and use different muscle groups. By playing and moving around with your child, you can help them use their growing motor skills.
Fine motor skills involve kids learning to move and control small groups of muscles, such as fingers and toes. Infants and toddlers develop their fine motor skills through physical movement and play. Babies learn fine motor skills and control as they play and move their feet and hands around. Toddlers keep improving their fine motor skills by doing normal things like learning to hold a pen or crayon to draw, stacking blocks, and putting puzzles together.
For infants and toddlers attending a Rockville daycare, building motor skills doesn’t have to be boring.
With you sitting down next to them, lay your little one on their stomach to help them build strong neck and back muscles. In the beginning, “tummy time” can be brief—just 3 to 5 minutes is perfect!
Once your baby starts crawling, you can make mazes for them to crawl through. For younger crawlers, you can make the maze out of pillows. Make the maze out of empty cardboard boxes for babies crawling but starting to stand. Get down on the floor with your baby and encourage them to crawl over or in between them. To change things up and keep your baby engaged, start playing peek-a-boo by hiding behind pillows or boxes as they crawl forward.
For this fun activity, toddlers will use dots to create things. With paint, a Q-tip, and some imagination, you can show a kid a new way to make art while improving their grasp. To make your life a little easier, choose paint that can be washed and is safe for toddlers. Hand your toddler a blank piece of paper, some paint, and the Q-tips, and have them draw using dots. For example, have them create the sun by creating a circle using dots rather than lines.
Kids can’t resist joining in on the fun whenever there’s food and animals involved! This fun activity can help children improve their fine motor skills by weaving Cheerios or other circular cereals onto a pipe cleaner. Toddlers will have fun making the bird feeders, but the fun doesn’t have to stop there. Once they are done, help your kid hang the bird feeder in front of a window so they can watch the birds as they eat.
The Floor is Lava is a fun indoor game that gets kids moving and using their imagination and a bit of cleverness. This game can spark a “real-life adventure” for your little ones as they try to avoid getting burned. For younger toddlers, you can use some tape and some colored squares of paper across the floor. The goal is to walk across the room without touching the floor, so kids must step onto the squares of paper.
For this activity, you can either run to the store to buy different buttons or use ones you have lying around the house. After setting out a handful of buttons, hand your toddlers some play dough and have them flatten it like a pancake. Once flattened, your child can stick a spaghetti noodle into the center of the pancake to stack buttons on. To keep things interesting ask your toddler to see how many buttons they can stack before the noddle breaks.
Pickup Sticks is a fun way to develop fine motor skills while practicing concentration. To play hold the sticks together in one hand, then rest the bottoms of the sticks on a hard surface and open your hand to let the sticks fall. Once the sticks land, kids take turns picking them up, one stick at a time. Encourage finger isolation by asking your toddler to use specific fingers each time they pick up a stick.
Threading helps toddlers improve their focus and hand-eye coordination. As your kid threads a piece of string through holes, they’re actually improving their muscle memory while building fine motor skills. When first introducing threading you can give your toddler larger beads. As they master each size, replace the current beads with smaller ones. Threading Cheerios on pipe cleaners or Rigatoni on yarn will add variety to the threading task.
Bubbles, which are safe for kids of all ages, are a fun way to help kids work on their fine motor skills. Blow some bubbles and have your child follow them with their eyes, or reach out to catch them before they drift away! Your little one can pop the bubbles with one finger, pinch them with a few fingers, or grab them with their whole hand.
Building motor skills in infants and toddlers is essential, as these skills play a key role in a child’s development. Infants won’t learn how to crawl or walk without gross motor skills. If toddlers don’t improve their fine motor skills, everyday tasks like tying their shoes or using a pencil become impossible. Parents and caregivers at a Rockville day care must support and nurture these motor skills by engaging our infants and toddlers in various activities.
MCCA has been recognized by the Maryland State Legislature for its commitment to Montgomery County issued a quality programs and special needs child care Proclamation in 2016 to MCCA for its commitment to Montgomery County child care for more than 50 years. MCCA was also selected as a 2018 nonprofit finalist for a MOXIE Award for boldness and innovation
MCCA is the oldest nonprofit licensed child care provider in Montgomery County and started its work in 1968 as a Community Action Project of the War on Poverty. Recognizing the need for quality child care programs in their neighborhoods, a group of local activists formed an association to establish centers in Montgomery County that would serve a diverse population and establish high standards for child care. Now, more than 50 years later, MCCA’s dedicated and expertly trained staff continue their tradition of providing high quality child care and play-based education for children.
Families with school aged children who can afford their child care expenses during the school year often struggle to afford the all-day programs they need when school is out for the summer. The Richard Krampf Summer Adventures Scholarship Fund was established to help provide children a safe and stimulating place to spend their weeks when school is out. Please contact an MCCA Director for details on how to apply.
