Building fine motor skills with cotton ball painting

Open ended invitations to explore are a great way to promote creativity in your classroom!

Today we talked a little bit about the letter Cc in our morning circle so to celebrate our letter Cc, I thought we should try some good old cotton ball painting…

 

You can also build fine motor skills with your students by counting!

 

Building Fine Motor Skills

To add an extra fine motor component to our cotton ball painting, I supplied clothespins all around the table and invited the children to use the clothespins to pick up their cotton balls and then dip them into the paint. Knowing that not all my students may know how to use a clothespin, I demonstrated for the children how to hold the clothespin with their fingers and squeeze hard to open it up and grab a cotton ball then use it to paint any way that they liked…

Encouraging Open Ended Exploration

Then I sent the children off to explore the painting process in their own way (along with all the other centers around the classroom)…

Some of the children decided that using the clothespin was too hard and chose to use their fingers instead (which still is a good way to promote fine motor skills)

While others focused their energy on using the clothespins…

And one little guy decided it would be much more interesting to explore LOTS of cotton balls…

Fostering Creativity

Many different interpretations on this process and all were simply wonderful…

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Deborah J Stewart

Deborah J Stewart

Every time I think I know everything I need to know about teaching young children, God says, "Hold on a minute!" and gives me a new challenge.

Let me tell ya...

With each new challenge that you overcome, you will find yourself better equipped and more passionate about teaching young children.

God didn't call wimps to lead, teach, or care for His children. Nope, he has high expectations, so get ready. You will have to give your very best but after teaching for over 30 years, I can tell you that it is a wonderful and rewarding journey.

Whenever your calling feels hard, just remember, 'He who began a good work in you (and in the children you serve) will be faithful to complete it.'

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