This fine motor activity leaf cutting activity, from Julie, takes no time at all to set up, plus you can do it outdoors this fall!
My kids love scissors! There’s something about the snip, snip, snip that keeps them enthralled for what seems like hours.
Festive Fall Fine Motor Leaf Cutting Basket Activity
We recently took our scissor skills outside for this fun fall fine motor leaf cutting activity.
Keep working on those fine motor skills with 30 ideas and materials.
For this leaf cutting activity, you’ll need:
- Child safety scissors
- Assorted baskets
- Leafs and other natural objects
Hunt for Leaves and Natural Objects
We went outside for our fine motor leaf cutting activity. First, I told my kids to go gather whatever they could find to add to their cutting basket.
Turn this into a scavenger hunt – like this nature hunt that my kids love!
Since my oldest already has decent scissor skills, I let him cut stems and leaves for their baskets. This added scissor practice wasn’t planned, but was totally welcome!
My kids wandered around our yard and snipped the plants and leaves they wanted for the basket. If you’re doing this in a shared space, guide your kids to gather leaves that have already dropped.
Since my littlest one is still working on mastering scissors, so I watched her closely.
I also placed in a handful of pretty leaves for them to cut, just in case.
You’ll love this this simple paper clip fine motor activity.
Cut the Leaves for Fine Motor Practice
After the leaves and natural objects were gathered, the kids got down to cutting. I showed them how to correctly hold the scissors.
Say “thumbs up!” to remind your kids of the proper hand position for cutting.
My littlest one is just getting used to scissors, so I love that this activity helped her practice those scissor skills in a fun way!
They had so much fun snipping all the natural materials and leaves into tiny bits! My son cut some into hearts and letters.
Mix Up Your Fall Fine Motor Leaf Cutting Activity
We were aiming for a relaxed, simple activity. But if you’d like to add more challenge or extend thinking a bit more, try these ideas!
- Have your kids sort the leaves by color before they cut.
- Challenge them to cut a leaf into different shapes, such as a circle or triangle.
- Talk about symmetry and find the symmetry in each leaf.
- Develop sensory input by having them close their eyes and identify the natural object just by touch or smell.
Keep working on scissor skills with five simple cutting activities.
What are your favorite activities for developing fine motor or scissor skills?
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