Improving motor skills can offer exciting and stimulating exercises.
Motor skills have two separate parts: gross and fine. Fine motor skills include matching shapes and colors, zipping, cutting straight lines and dressing or bathing. Gross motor skills include walking, lifting, throwing, kicking, sitting upright, jumping and reaching. Gross motor skills are important for major body functions, while fine motor skills take some time to develop and won't occur over night. You can improve motor skills by practicing over and over.
Instructions
1. Encourage your child to develop their gross motor skills by allowing her to ride bikes, play with large balls and to gallop like a horse. Encourage her as well to kick balls, balance on one foot and throw balls. Remember that each child grows and develops at different rates. Be patient with her, and praise her accomplishments and efforts. Improve gross motor skills with exercises by playing Simon Says. Imitation activities such as creeping like a snake, waddling like a duck and hopping like a rabbit are effective for exercising the gross motor skills.
2. Provide activities such as cutting, pasting, buttoning, zipping, lacing, opening and closing jars, tying, locking and unlocking and sweeping the floor for your child. Allow him to do it often so that his body gets used to the integrating muscular, skeletal and neurological functions. Building blocks are also effective exercises to help fine tune fine motor skills. The smaller the blocks are, the better the outcome. Smaller blocks require more concentration and control.
3. Help your child build fine motor skills by manipulating small objects, using scissors, drawing, painting, coloring, doing puzzles, screwing and unscrewing, making crafts and serving finger foods. Anything that requires the precise movement of the fingers is an effective way to improve motor skills.
4. Give it some time. Improving motor skills takes time and repetition just like learning to sing properly or learning to play the guitar.
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