Home Hot Topics Articles Directors' Choice Awards About Us / Contact Us Activities & Curriculum Activities for Outcome-Based Learning Arts & Crafts Music for Learning Recommended Reading Sharing Boards: What Do YOU Think? NEWSlink Current National News Conference Calendar Topics In Early Childhood Education Art and Creativity in Early Childhood Education Job Sharing Board State Licensing Requirements Stay Connected! Each month we'll send you an email filled with articles and ideas for your classroom. Subscribe Now Date: 1/19/2007 12:58:00 PM Author: Elizabeth Lasher (elasher@a-cs.org) Subject: holding a pencil I have found that many children only eat "finger foods" (chicken nuggets, pre-cut bites of food) and never use a fork or spoon. The grasp used for eating is similar to holding a pencil. Find out if the child is using eating utensils or not. If they do not use them incorporate cooking projects. Cutting pancakes into polite bites allows them to use both sides of the upper body and cross mid-line. We have a clean-up full of items children can use to strenghten their hands. One of their favorites is a tennis ball which has a small segment cut out of it. The squeeze the ball to pick up small items (great for legos). When the mouth of the ball is full they dump the items into the appropriate home. Heavy work is also important for developing proper postural control and strength necessary for writing. Children need to have opportunities to crab walk, wheel barrow with a partner, donkey, kick. This also strenghtens the hands for writing. Take a look at their handprints when you do a handprint project. If they have that awewome full handprint on the paper then their hands have not developed enough. Name: Email: Subject

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