What are fine motor skills, and how do we practice them
Fine motor skills and their practice are an important aspect of children's development. It allows you to use and control the small muscles of your hands and fingers, which is essential for everyday activities such as writing, drawing, or pinning buttons. Exercises for developing fine motor skills must be fun and motivating for children. Overall, fine motor skills training is crucial for developing important skills in children, including speech.
You can improve children's fine motor skills with various exercises and games. One of the most common ways is playing with small objects such as blocks and jigsaws or doing puzzles.
If you have a child under two, you can practice fine motor skills by placing small objects together in large containers, perhaps in a muffin tin, or by dropping coins into a coin box. If you want another fun way to practice fine motor skills, use orthopaedic mats and puzzle-shaped keyrings that come in various surfaces and colours. Let children stack the mats together without your help, as they fit together easily, and there is no risk of swallowing a small piece. Pleasant finger massage and sophisticated 3D surfaces of various colours motivate children to do more and more activities.
But if you already have an experienced "puzzle builder" at home, use classic puzzles with pictures, which you can find plenty of on the market. If you want to encourage children to compose as much as possible, choose a motif that is close to their hearts. For example, choose the fairy tale, character, or animal your child likes best. At the same time, be careful to choose the appropriate difficulty. Too much complexity significantly demotivates children.
If you want something more unconventional, reach for MUFFIK reversible puzzles. In addition to fine motor skills, it also develops logical thinking and children's imagination. Thanks to the material from which they are made (certified PVC), they will also last much longer than classic paper puzzles. They are more resistant to water, breakage, and general damage.
With older children, you can also play a tactile memory game that is not focused on visual search. For this game, cover the children's eyes and let them match objects together using only their sense of touch. You can try it with different shapes of wooden blocks, for example, if you want to focus the tactile memory game on connecting different surfaces, for example, cutting different pieces of fabric such as leather, cotton, or wool. You can use our Tactile memory game set to engage your whole body. You'll find four different surfaces in the classic size, four mini pieces, and, as a bonus, four keychains. The transfer of sensations from the feet to the hands increases concentration and attention and influences the child's fine motor skills, intelligence, and memory.
But don't forget the most important thing! Each child develops at their own pace, giving them enough space and time to develop this skill.