Putting a pair of scissors in the hands of a preschooler can sound like a scary thing. But with the right scissors, age appropriate activities and parental guidance, your child can learn this skill easily and be ready for Kindergarten (or even preschool)!
Why is cutting with scissors important in a child’s development?
- It helps develop fine motor skills which are essential for grasping pencils, writing, using small objects and completing precision tasks (like playing an instrument).
- Cutting practice gives a child a chance to work on bilateral coordination, which is the ability to use both sides of the body in a controlled and organized manner.
- It can improve a child’s hand-eye coordination by practicing having the eyes and hands work together to organize and control the task of cutting.
- Activities with cutting also promote focus and attention. Children learn how to use scissors by concentrating and focusing for an extended period of time and this higher-level brain involvement can help them focus on school work in the future.
The following articles are great for helping you get your child on the right track to using scissors!
Prioritize Cutting with Scissors for Preschoolers (KidsGrooveandGo.com)
This discusses details on the importance of cutting with scissors in a child’s development, signs to look for to see if your child is ready to use scissors and helpful drawings to show developmental stages of what scissors use looks like for each age, starting at 1 years old.
Teaching Scissor Skills to Preschoolers
Focusing more on pre-cutting activities your child can work on before they are ready to begin using scissors, it offers guide for picking out the right scissors for each stage. Includes scissor safety rules to discuss with children and ideas for materials to practice cutting skills on.
Our Bethany Family shows how easy and fun it is to add scissor practice to your day!
