Are you looking for fun fine motor activities for toddlers or preschoolers? If so, you’re in luck! I’m going to share 8 ideas that are fun activities for little ones, but beneficial for fine motor too! If you’re just looking for inspiration, check out the pictures in this post. If you like the look of the printable pages though, you can grab them here!
My little one, Lily, is nearly 3 years old. One day, I found myself trying to think of screen-free activities to entertain her. She loves arts and crafts, so I started thinking of activity ideas (she was getting bored of just coloring in).
I’m not just a parent looking to enterain my kid though. The teacher part of me knew that it would be a double win if it was somewhat educational too. I didn’t want super educational activities though. 2 year olds don’t need to know their ABCs just yet! I knew she’d prefer cute animals or flowers over the letter B or number 2.
This is why I was drawn to the idea of flowers, umbrellas, suns, butterflies, trees, and rainbows. They are good for springtime but also just cute year-round.
Anyways, let’s dive in!
1.) Play Dough Mats
Play dough is such a fun activity and using mats guides little ones toward creating something instead of just mashing colors together! Kids can learn about colors and work on rolling shapes.
Click here for playdough.
FYI – This post contains affiliate links to Amazon to help you gather supplies. I make a small commission when I recommend products that I genuiely enjoy and it’s at no cost to you 🙂
2.) Tear Art
Grab some glue and colored paper, and with a few rips, you’ve got a cute craft idea! Lily was really concentrating on sticking down the pieces, so it kept her busy for a while.
Supplies – Click here for colored paper and here for glue.
3.) Finger Painting
Okay, so anything with paint is a bit messy and I understand if you’re hesitant about this one. However, smocks and paint mats work wonders. Plus, my biggest tip is to get washable paints. They wash out of hands and clothes well and can easily be wiped off surfaces.
4.) Dot Painting
If the thought of finger painting feels too messy and stressful, dot painting is a less messy alternative. Just grab some q-tips! This is another one that keeps kids busy as they concentrate on carefully dotting the dots. Markers are another option if you really don’t want to use paints.
Supplies – Click here for washable paints, here for cotton swabs, here for paint palettes, and here for markers.
5.) Bingo Daubing
Bingo markers are a great non-messy option for adding color to an image and working on fine motor dotting! This is better for really young kids as the circles are bigger than they are for dot painting.
Click here for bingo daubers.
6.) Dot Stickers
Dot stickers are cheap to buy and kids LOVE them! They can be used for decorating animals or creating patterns.
Click here for dot stickers.
7.) Stamping
Stamping is another fun activity for kids and it’s not too pricey to grab stamps at your local dollar store.
Click here for stamps.
7.) Tracing
Tracing isn’t quite as fun and crafty as the other activities, but it’s definitely got educational value as kids are working on prewriting skills. Creamy crayons are great for this.
Supplies – Click here for creamy crayons, here for paint sticks, here for jumbo crayons, and here for normal crayons.
8.) Placing Objects
This idea is the least messy for sure. I recommend using small erasers and just letting your kids line them up and work on placing them down.
Supplies – Click here for pom poms, here for buttons, here for beads, and here for mini erasers.
I hope you found this post helpful! If you like the look of these activities, you can grab them here. It’s a 53 page PDF that you can just print and go!
Although these activites were inspired from my 2 year old toddler at home, they are PERFECT for:
- Preschool
- Homeschool
- Kindergarten
- Special Education
Also, you’ll also love these activities if you’re an occupational therapist, childcare/daycare educator, or you’re running a play group!
Leave a Reply