Make Preschool Fine Motor Practice Fun with Buttons

It’s no secret that preschoolers like to grab and put their hands on just about anything. Glasses, jewelry, cell phones…anything you have they want!

Instead of worrying about them hurting themselves or breaking something, why not give them something fun that will also work on their fine motor skills?

This simple stacking button activity is one that will hold their interest and make learning fun as well.

Not only will this boredom buster hold their attention, but you’ll find that they enjoy it so much you’ll be able to make dinner or drink your coffee before it gets cold!

Stacking Button Activity for Toddlers

Supplies needed:

• Dry Spaghetti 
• Assorted Buttons
• Playdough 

Start by having your child choose their favorite color of playdough. Once chosen, let them flatten it out as much as they can. 

Once it’s been squished, take a few sticks of the dry spaghetti and insert it into the flattened playdough. You might want to break them in half or make them a little bit shorter if you think that they are too long. You can use as few or many as you think your preschooler will be interested in.

Next, bring out the buttons. Let your child choose a wide variety of colors and sizes. Ideally, they’ll choose different ones so that they can work on adding on varied ones to the spaghetti.

You might want to start by showing them an example of how to thread one of two of the buttons onto the pasta. Once they see you do it, get ready for them to launch on their own!

What else could be taught during this button practice activity?

Consider turning this activity into a counting learning lesson as well and see just how many buttons your preschooler can stack without breaking the pasta in half!

Another fun learning idea could be to work on their listening skills as well. Place 4 spaghetti noodles on the flattened playdough and give your little one directions on what colored buttons should be stacked on what dry pasta noodle. They’ll learn great listening skills while also working on their colors. 

When it comes to great button crafts for preschoolers, this is one that really does offer a wide variety of possibilities. Plus, when they’re done with the button stacking, they can then use the playdough to create with their imagination as well. 

How does this preschool activity help with fine motor skills?

It’s a wonderful activity for your child to build their finger and hand muscles as they mold and flatten the playdough and use their fingers to thread the buttons on the spaghetti. Your preschooler is developing hand-eye coordination while trying to get those button holes to fit exactly on the pasta too.

 

There’s so many ways for preschool kids to learn and explore with this button stacking playdough activity! 

Want to try making your own playdough for this button learning activity?

Check out this Lavender Playdough recipe! Or you can use this Edible Pumpkin Pie Play Dough, too!