Fine motor skills involve the use of the smaller muscle of the hands, commonly in activities like using pencils, scissors, construction with lego or duplo, doing up buttons and opening lunch boxes.
Fine motor skill efficiency significantly influences the quality of the task outcome as well as the speed of task performance. Efficient fine motor skills require a number of independent skills to work together to appropriately manipulate the object or perform the task.
What skills do ‘fine motor skills’ include?
- Academics skills including Pencil skills (scribbling, colouring, drawing, writing)Scissors skills (cutting)
- Play Construction skills using lego, duplo, puzzles, train tracks Doll dressing and manipulation
- IT use (e.g. mouse and stylus manipulation)
- Self-care including dressing – tying shoelaces, doling up sandals, zips, buttons, belts eating – using cutlery, opening lunch boxes and food bags hygiene – cleaning teeth, brushing hair, toileting.
