This cutting activity for kids comes straight from our book, Playful Learning Lab for Kids ! A great way to practice cutting while learning about transportation.
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This fun activity for teaching kids how to use scissors was invented during a therapy session with a preschooler who was very reluctant to learn to cut. He didn’t like how it felt to put his fingers through the holes of the scissors and he had difficulty with getting the hang of cutting forward across the paper.
I had some colored tape placed on the paper to give him a visual cue of where he wanted his scissors to go, but it just wasn’t doing the trick. So…we made things a little more interesting!
This activity is straight from the pages of our book, Playful Learning Lab for Kids! Get your copy today and learn how to use this activity as part of a social studies lesson about transportation or community helpers. In the book, you’ll find ways to maximize the sensory experience in this activity and other fun ways to use this activity for learning.
What you’ll need:
-colored tape
-marker
-paper
-scissors
What to do:
Place a strip of tape onto the paper. Tear or cut off another smaller piece of tape and place it on the table.
On the small piece of tape, draw a small:
-sailboat
-car or
-train
On the long piece of tape that is stuck to your paper, draw:
-waves to make a “river”
-a dotted line down the middle to make a “road”
-small lines perpendicular to the strip of tape to make “train tracks”
Then, stick the small piece of tape with the vehicle on it onto the child’s thumb, so the vehicle is positioned right over his or her thumbnail.
To complete the activity, the child will sail his boat, steer his car, or drive his train right down the road, river, or railroad. The catch? He has to be able to see his vehicle the whole time (this is a great visual prompt to discourage “thumbs down” cutting!).
How to change it up:
-Once the child has the hang of cutting on straight lines, try placing the tape in different patterns or shapes on the page (zig zag, square, triangle, etc.)
-What other designs can you think of for this activity? A man walking down the sidewalk? A caterpillar climbing along a branch?
Check out these creative cutting ideas for kids and learn more about how to teach kids how to use scissors!
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Great ideas! Love the vehicle theme!
I agree; a really great idea. You could find out what the child’s interests are and modify the picture you use accordingly eg for a child interested in outer space you could make a drawing of a spaceship and rename the lines accordingly.
Cute!!! Will add this to my scissor skill unit ideas!
Thanks!
OT Margo
Great Margo! So glad you liked this activity! My preschoolers loved it too! :)
Supper! and helps kids with strange grasps to keep the thumb up! love it!