What are fine motor skills? How to develop early for children?

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted with Master, Doctor Dang Huy Toan - Pediatrician - Neonatologist - Department of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Vinmec Nha Trang International General Hospital.
Children's motor development increases with age, from gross motor skills to fine motor skills. Children's fine motor skills will develop better if they are trained and performed many times.

1. What are fine motor skills?

Children develop motor skills with age at different rates. Fine motor skills are skills that use the small muscles that control the hands and fingers to help children perform many difficult movements.
This skill gradually develops through the child's experience, learning from adults, and exposure to a variety of toys, materials, even food. Children often begin to acquire these skills as early as a few months old and continue to learn additional skills throughout their development.
Fine motor skills are one of the important skills that children need to master to be able to function most flexibly. Fine motor skills help children to perform self-care such as brushing teeth, dressing...

Some of the fine motor skills that children need to develop include:
Cupping and opening fingers: Inward curving movements of the palm, as these help coordinate movements between the fingers. with each other, thereby progressing to other important skills such as writing, drawing, chopsticks, undressing, and grasping Develop hand dexterity: The use of thumb, index finger, and other fingers together to perform movements such as grasping, twisting the box... The skill of using two hands in parallel: Allows the baby to use both hands at the same time, supporting the process of performing the movement. Scissors Skills: Children can learn to use scissors and combine hand strength and eye coordination.

2. Some milestones in the development of children's fine motor skills

Some milestones for fine motor development in infants and young children:
From 0 to 3 months: Baby can put hands on mouth From 3 to 6 months: Can hold hands together, move the toy from one hand to another. From 6 to 9 months: Can clap hands, put food in mouth, put fingers together, pick up toys with both hands. 9 to 12 months: Grabs small objects with two thumbs and index fingers, holds toys with one hand, uses one index finger to point at objects. From 1 to 2 years old: Stack one object on top of another, scribble on paper with your hands, scoop out food with a spoon, turn the pages of a book, undress yourself. From 2 to 3 years old: Know how to turn a doorknob, wash your hands, use a spoon properly to eat, string large beads into a chain, remove the lid of simple toys. From 3 to 4 years: Knows how to unbutton and button clothes, use scissors to cut paper, twist and unfasten correctly. Children can draw less detailed houses and characters. From 5 to 7 years old: Can draw pictures with more details, copy pictures, use pens more like adults, color do not cross the line. Despite such a development milestone, there are children who develop a little earlier or later than the set milestone. In case if the deviation is not too much, it is not a concern, parents should support the child to develop fine motor skills better.

3. How to develop children's early fine motor skills

Fine motor development must depend on each age. Do not try to force your child to do things that are not age appropriate. Some measures that can be applied to help children develop fine motor better include:
For young children from birth, help them practice grasping reflexes, by putting their favorite objects in front of them. face and within reach of children. Encourage children to hold food and put it in their mouth at the beginning of weaning. Encourage the development of fine motor skills in everyday life with simple games such as drawing with crayons, coloring clay... for children to be creative at home as well as at school. Allow your child to help with meal preparation, such as stirring, mixing or pouring ingredients, if there is no danger to the child. Play games with children such as jigsaw puzzles, chess, seahorses, etc. Teach children to hold pencils and draw with their fingers. Teach your child how to pour water into a cup and drink by himself. Teach children how to use a hole puncher, teach them to string beads from large beads to small beads. Teach your child to wrap a string around an object. Place the object in the box then encourage your baby to remove it on his own with a pair of tongs or tweezers with two fingers. Fine motor skills are essential for a child's development, so parents should let their children learn to do simple things on their own that are not dangerous to help children develop better fine motor skills. Besides, parents should not be too worried when the child's movement is not as good as that of other young people, but encourage them to develop better.
In order for their children to develop well physically and mentally, parents should know the important milestones to accompany and develop with their children. As soon as they detect abnormal signs in both physical and psychological health of their children, parents should take their children to reputable medical facilities for advice and examination.
Vinmec International General Hospital is one of the leading hospitals in the country in terms of examination, diagnosis and treatment of digestive, urological, respiratory diseases, nutrition, vaccination and vaccination. in infants and young children. With modern equipment, good facilities and a team of doctors, experts with many years of experience always bring peace of mind and comfort to parents and children during each visit.

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