Snapped Crayons

What you need

• a few chunky crayons snapped into short pieces
• a sheet of paper

How to do it

1. Snap a couple of chunky crayons into short pieces, about the length of your thumb.
2. Put a few pieces and a sheet of paper in front of them.
3. Scribble with a piece yourself.
4. Let them pick a piece and make their own marks.

Why it matters

A short piece of crayon is too small to hold in a fist, so their fingers do more of the holding without anyone having to show them.

What they're learning

Fingertip holding

Short crayons make fingers do the work instead of a fist.

Making marks

Every scribble is practice steering a tool.

Hand strength

Pressing hard enough to colour builds the small muscles.

What to look for

Watch for their fingertips, rather than the whole hand, doing the holding.

A tip

Let them hold it however it sits in their hand; there's no need to fix their grip at this age. Stay with them, and put the crayons away afterwards. Keep pieces big enough that they can't fit in their mouth.

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