Preschool Scissor Practice
There will come an age in your little one’s life when they become so curious about one thing – scissors!
For some reason, kids will become curious about scissors. We see tales of kids cutting important documents, home decorations, curtains, and even worse their hair. Yikes!
Thankfully, parents know better now and take advantage of this curiosity to enhance their preschooler’s fine motor skills.
With repeated scissor practice under the supervision of an adult, you can prevent any disaster while turning it into a fun learning experience.
Plus, preschool scissor practice at home is so easy that all you will need are some supplies that you most likely already have at home.
4 Tips for Teaching Preschool Scissor Skills
Helping your kids learn how to handle scissors early on will give them an advantage when they start entering preschool or kindergarten. There are tons of school activities that require the use of scissors. If they do scissor practice activities at home, then you won’t have to worry about them as much when they use them on their own at school.
Here are a few tips for scissors skills practice at home:
Get The Right Pair of Scissors
This step may seem unnecessary since most scissors cut through objects the same way, but they do differ in colors and designs overall.
There is, however, one factor that you must consider when choosing the right pair for your kids – the size.
You must make sure that the scissor your child uses will fit their hand. They should not use a pair that is too small for their hand as it may hurt them. Also, it can be too dangerous if you give them something too big for their tiny little hands to handle.
Plus, you also must consider the preferences of your kid because they will be the ones using scissors.
Use Different Materials to Cut
Don’t let them only cut paper. They must also have scissor-cutting practice through other materials to get a better understanding of how it feels and looks to cut the other materials. Playdough is one option that you can have them practice on. It’s a neat material to practice on and you can always put it back together. When choosing different materials, please make sure to choose options that are safe for the children.
Help Them Out
This is most important during the first few times you teach your kid how to use scissors. You should model the process and show them how it is properly done while explaining how to be safe about it.
You can also help by holding the material they have to cut. This will allow them to focus better on cutting the material. They can learn to hold it and cut it as they improve their cutting skills throughout the practice process.
Constantly Practice Cutting
Your kids will need to learn how to properly hold the scissors on their first attempts. It will take a lot of time and practice until you can be more confident that they know how to handle scissors well.
You should also make sure that every time they practice with their scissor, you give them a different activity to keep them enticed and wanting to learn more.
This will not only make learning more fun but will also create different experiences for them to remember.
For starters, you can check out these practice worksheets of free printable preschool scissor practice sheets for your kids to enjoy!
Otherwise, here is a list of fine motor activities involving scissors that you can try with your kids!
3 Unique and Easy Scissor Practice Ideas
Enjoy bonding with your little ones with these 5 easy preschool scissor practice activities:
Magazine Shape Hunt
If you have old magazines at home, then you can repurpose them as your child’s scissor practice buddies!
You can ask your kids to hunt for photos in the magazine they want to cut out. You can follow this example from Fun Learning for Kids and have your little one search for photos according to shapes.
Your little one can also hunt for magazine photos based on starting letters, colors, names, sizes, and so much more!
This activity will allow them to refine their motor skills and their observational skills while thinking critically.
Name-Spelling Scissors Art
Have your kid cut out little pieces of paper of the same size and then ask them to spell out their name using the strips. This activity can be that easy!
This enhances not just their scissors skills but also their creativity as they decide on the colors that they use to spell their name. It also helps them learn and remember how to spell their name!
Check out how to do this easy scissor practice idea here.
Scissor Skills Spaghetti Sensory Play
When you’re planning to make some spaghetti, your kids can practice their scissors skills with the noodles while you make the sauce.
Once your pasta is done and has been allowed to cool, then your kids can start cutting them. Scissor Skills with Spaghetti (just from the name itself) is a fun unique activity that your kids will surely love to do with you.
Their reward? Your deliciously cooked spaghetti in smaller chunks to enjoy! Yum.
Don’t forget to remind your child that…
- Safety is a top priority when holding scissors. They should be aware of their surroundings so that they don’t hurt themselves. As the parent, you must provide the safe space they need to practice safely.
- They may only cut the materials you give them to cut.
- Their scissors skills will get better with proper practice.
Don’t forget to check out these 20 Easy Cutting Activities for Toddlers.
Lastly, a reminder to parents: ALL preschool scissor fun activities should be done with adult supervision.
Have fun learning with your little ones!
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