Cutting requires muscle control, accuracy and coordination. Don’t expect your child to grasp cutting right away, it can take weeks and even months. While you cannot control when your child will be able to use scissors, you can make sure your child has the proper hand placement. Remind them, “I need a thumbs up!” You can also put a marker dot, sticker or a smiley face on the child’s thumb and remind them it needs to point to the ceiling.
Here are some fun ideas that your child can use to practice proper scissor techniques…
- Playdough. Cutting, kneading and pinching the dough will help with developing hand muscles.
- Cookie dough. Make up a batch of cookie dough and cut it up before baking.
- Straws
- Yarn
- Colored construction paper. Let your child free cut, then glue the shapes on to make an artwork mosaic.
- Play with scrapbook scissors. They come with such fun zig-zags and scalloped designs that it makes cutting even more fun.
- Scissor cutting practice sheets
