In need of some ideas to get your kids away from screens at home? If you have painter’s tape lying around, you can develop some creative activities that will keep you and your kids entertained and engaged while helping to develop their visual-motor, fine motor, gross motor, and sensory processing skills.
Adequate development of fine motor strength, pinch grip, visual motor skills, and core strength are fundamental building blocks for success and independence with daily tasks such as dressing (buttons, fasteners, zippers, etc.), opening food packages and containers, toileting, and using silverware at mealtime. Here’s some fun activities to try with an everyday, household item: Painter’s Tape!
1: Tic-Tac-Toe Game
Create a tic-tac-toe board on the floor or table with painter’s tape and use bean bags or other household items to toss (or place) onto your preferred square. This game can help refine visual motor coordination, turn taking skills, and emotional regulation.
To upgrade, have your child stand farther away from the board while tossing. To downgrade, you can make the board larger to increase chance of accuracy or use a smaller version while seated at a table or on the floor, and eliminate throwing altogether.
2: Hopscotch
Create hopscotch on the floor with painter’s tape. This is a fantastic way to practice jumping and balancing on one foot as well as practice counting numbers.
This activity can be easily upgraded by creating different number sequences that your child has to follow (such as 1, 3, 6, 9, 10) or downgraded to bunny hops if one leg hopping is too challenging.
3: Finger Painting on Window
Draw a picture using painter’s tape on a window. Using washable paint, have your child paint the picture. This is a great sensory and finger isolation activity. Core strength and postural control are also targeted when a child stands and interacts with a vertical surface!
For children that demonstrate aversions to the texture of paint, allow the child to wear a glove or utilize a sponge for painting. To make this harder, you can encourage your child to try holding different positions, such as tall kneeling or half kneeling.
4: Shapes/Letters/Numbers Game
Create shapes, letters, or numbers on the ground with painter’s tape. Have your child practice tracing the shapes, letters, and numbers with their finger or with a dry paintbrush. If the letters are large enough, your child can even walk the formation of the shapes/letters/numbers. This is a great activity for whole-body learning and pre-writing skills.
You can upgrade and target working memory by having your child spell out simple words, or downgrade by demonstrating and providing physical assistance to trace.
5: Peeling Off the Tape
Stick on pieces of painter’s tape to a window or table. Have the child peel off the tape using a pincer grasp. This activity promotes hand strengthening as well as develops a stronger pincer grasp.
You can downgrade by creating small tabs at the end of the tape (fold a little bit under) so that your child has something to grab. If your child needs more motivation, you can tape some of his/her favorite toys to a surface and have them remove the tape in order to “save” their toys.
Modify to Fit Your Child’s Needs
Each of the above activities can be modified to fit your child’s needs, while still challenging them appropriately to develop their fine and visual motor skills. Adding activities like these into your daily play routines can have a strong positive influence on the progression of your child’s development, and allows them the necessary practice that it takes to master specific skills.
If you feel your child continues to need work on fine motor skills, contact one of our pediatric occupational therapists today for an assessment. They can be reached at 773-687-9241! Happy Taping!
