Gross Motor Vs Fine Motor Skills

Let’s talk motor skills because I’m sure you hear about them at every doctor’s appointment and from every mom on the internet or the local momma at the park. From birth to two years old our children are in a constant state of developmental growth and as parents we are trying to keep up right? Most of us get the mom guilt of am I doing enough? Do they watch too much Ms. Rachel? How to I play with them? Remember you are enough! You are exactly what your little one needs!

So, what is gross motor? Gross motor is any movement or skill that involves a large muscle movement for example: Kicking, walking, crawling, throwing, sitting up, running, etc. Think gross like gross income or the total the BIG picture.

Fine motor, what about that one? Fine motor is the movement or skill that involves smaller muscle movement for example: Drawing or writing, grabbing, pulling, pinching, etc. Think fine in the context of hair or thread its thin or small.

How do I develop these skills in my child? Through play of course! At this age children don’t need worksheets they don’t need test or desks!

They need outdoor nature walks, paint brushes with water on the sidewalk, play dough, cheerio dust with tweezer to pick up an object. We will talk about hundreds more of cheap or even free things you have in your home you can turn into a wonderful learning experience for your baby, toddler, or crazy two-year-old.

Children at this age are soaking up their environment around them. They are watching you. If your child isn’t ready to throw the ball yet, you can throw it in the air and exaggerate your movements while saying “throw” “catch”. If you have a house with stairs, you can show them the safe way in which you’d like them to climb them.

For example, one thing I taught my son very early was how I wanted him to get off of our bed. We taught him to crawl to the edge and started using the simple phrase feet first. We practiced daily if he was engaged and excited, we continued. If it felt like he was distracted or over it we moved onto whatever suit his needs before coming back to it at a later date. My son at 9 months could safely climb off our bed and by 11 months he could use a step stool to climb onto the bed. This is gross motor both of those activities are a learned skill using large muscle groups. He uses this skill of feet first to go downstairs, to climb off large steps at the playground, and currently to go down the slide independently (he prefers to slide down feet first on his tummy currently).

The first skill my son learned was not to kick a ball. Why? Because it wasn’t what interested him, and it wasn’t relevant at the time. Climbing off the bed was important to us as a family because it was a safety concern, we were always trying to make sure he didn’t dive off head first. Which was his initial reaction, hands out and headfirst!

So, this begs the question, does my son know how to kick a ball yet? No. But that is okay. Remember we are not comparing. All of our children are different. On this blog we are baby lead. We will try our best to grow with our child and support them through what interests them.

Follow along as I move into our next adventure of my son loving pulling tissues from a tissue box! Great opportunity for some fine motor action!

Until next time!

XOXO

Ashley