Toys that Teach Hand-Eye Coordination are also Lots of Fun!
All children develop at their own individual pace. Incorporating fun hand-eye coordination games and activities into your child's daily schedule will help your child benefit down the road when he or she is learning to write, fasten clothing, and play sports. Allowing your child to manipulate objects with her hands and learn how pieces can fit together starts the ball rolling. Many toys and games are available to assist with polishing your child's coordination skills. We've listed some fantastic ways to enrich your child's mind and body for each age of young development to give your youngster the leading edge.
Toddlers
Before you know it, your baby will go from placing an object into a container and taking it out, over and over again, to clapping, drawing, and walking. Toys like puzzles, bead roller coasters, and stackable blocks are ideal for starting out. At first, babies can touch, sort, pack into piles and dump these toys for familiarization. Once they step into toddlerhood, the purpose of these toys takes hold and they can learn how to make a building, work a puzzle, and race a bead across the winding bar. Identifying, picking up, and grasping objects to fit together or stack is the perfect way for toddlers to hone those hand-eye coordination skills.
Activity tables are great for giving toddlers the incentive to stand up and walk around the table to push buttons, hear music, and see colorful lights. Toddlers who are steady on their feet and are ready for a new phase of play will benefit from ride on toys that will introduce them to a whole other level of coordination skills. Sitting on a small vehicle with handles and learning to push themselves and turn corners prepares children for when they ride tricycles and bikes later on. In addition, your toddler will love zooming from Point A to Point B quickly!
Preschoolers
When your child hits preschool age, he'll be preparing for the big time: kindergarten! During this special time in his life, consider using play to help your child focus on the basic skills he'll be working on at school. Tracing letters on paper or on new magnetic trace boards will help your child rehearse holding a pencil and controlling it as he moves it around the paper or board.
Help your little one prepare for playing with friends on the school playground by playing games with him that involve balancing, jumping, and swinging. Also, fellow kids are a great catalyst for learning new things on the playground! I tried teaching my child how to swing on the swings for a year. Once she began preschool, she learned in a week. She was starting to get the hang of it, but being around her friends gave her the extra "push" she needed. Teaching your child the fundamentals can keep him or her geared up for all the new and exciting adventures that will happen once school starts.
Grade School Ages
Your child's brain development never stops. Once they hit grade school hand-eye coordination only gets more complex. When Cursive writing, computer classes, and sports are introduced, we parents can still help keep things going in the right direction. Building models and play sets that your child must put together will teach him how to finish things, read or follow directions, and make something fun out of what previously looked like just a pile of pieces. When you and your child work on these together you'll be creating special bonding time that is scarce with all the school and extracurricular activities that happen on a daily basis.
Lock up the video games and have your child physically play games like ping-pong, baseball, and golf. Your child's brain has been waiting since birth to be programmed with all the wondrous things it can accomplish. Video games do help develop concentration skills, but moving the body together with the mind creates the action needed to fully develop. Every avenue of the brain will flourish working as a team, maneuvering balls, clubs, and racquets, and getting beneficial exercise.
Recommended Products
Bug Jug Fill & Spill by Melissa & Doug | Grand Piano Music Toy by Melissa & Doug |
Anatex Magnetic Trace A Letter (26 Letters) | GuideCraft Balance Base |
Dexton Kids Big Driver Golf Clubs (Age 5-7) |
