1. G. Writing
Notes from the teacher’s desk…
1. Have the child write in the air OCTOBER and
Developing Fine Motor Skills
and in front of his eyes (arm NOVEMBER
Fine motor skills can be defined as small muscle outstretched) with his finger.
News and events:
movements: those that occur in the finger, in 2. To increase his tactile awareness,  Children´s Day
coordination with the eyes. Fine motor skills
have him trace over letters on (Oct. 26th)
won't develop over-night, but with time and textured surfaces. Have him
practice. Here are some suggestions for  Open Day
manipulate 3-dimensional letters
developing fine motor skills, and some activities (Nov. 16th)
when blindfolded.
to use to practice them:
3. When a writing tool is introduced, Happy
A. Cutting
Use a thick black line to guide cutting the letters which involve similar Birthdays to:
following: strokes should be taught first ♥ María Antonia Uribe
(moving simple to complex). Next, ( Oct. 30th )
1. A fringe from a piece of paper
combinations of letters in short
♥ Nicolás Mejia
2. Cut off corners of a piece of paper words, sentences and finally
(Nov. 15th )
spontaneous writing. (Remember
3. Cut along curved lines ♥ Antonia García
to use words which are within the
4. Cut lines with a variety of angles child's reading vocabulary). (Nov. 17th )
5. Cut figures with curves and angles Things to remember:
6. Cut clay with blunt scissors Upright working surfaces promote fine Tooth Fairy
motor skills. Examples of these are: vertical
B. Placing and Pasting Wishes for:
chalkboards; easels for painting; flannel
☺ Jerónimo Ferrer
1. Place a variety of forms (eg. blocks, boards; magnet boards (or fridge); windows
felt, paper, string, yarn, cereal, and mirrors; white boards, etc. Kids can also
cotton) on outlines make sticker pictures; do rubber ink-
stamping; use reusable vinyl stickers to
2. Match shapes, color, or pictures to a
make pictures; complete puzzles with thick
page and paste them within the outlines
knobs; use magna-doodle and etch-a-sketch Photo Gallery
C. Tracing and Coloring as well. The benefits for these include:
1. Use a thick black line if needed having the child's wrist positioned to
develop good thumb movements; they help
2. Trace and then color shapes, increasing
develop good fine motor muscles; the child
the size and complexity gradually
is using the arm and shoulder muscles.
D. Self-Care Skills In general, it is more fun to learn while you
play. Try to incorporate activities like
1. Buttoning, Lacing, Tying, Fastening
dress-up to teach zipping and buttons; card
Snaps, Zipping, Carrying, Using a
creations to practice writing or tracing
screwdriver, Locking and unlocking a
skills; cutting and pasting to make a creation
door, Winding a clock, Opening and
other than just a plain piece of paper, etc.
closing jars, Vacuuming a rug, Rolling
Be creative and have fun!
out dough or other simple cooking
activities, Washing plastic dishes,
Sweeping the floor, Dressing, Bathing
Practice on:
E. Finger Tracing  Counting, recognizing and writing
1. Many times when a child is unable to do numbers 1-20 or more. Shapes (circle,
a worksheet, it helps to trace the pattern square, triangle, rectangle, oval, diamond
with his finger before he tries it with a and hexagon)
pencil.  Ordering #´s up to 20 or more.
 Talking about different kinds of
2. Have the child trace a pattern in sand,
HOUSES. Remember Friday homework.
cornmeal, finger paint, etc. The textures
 Discussing ways to be responsible and
give the child kinesthetic feedback
committed at home.
F. Pre-Writing  Reading, discussing and review
1. Dot-to-dot drawings of pictures, vocabulary from ORT books.
objects, shapes, numbers, letters, etc. WE ARE PROUD-CONGRATULATIONS
2. Typing exercises
3. Tile and mosaic work
4. Folding activities
5. Fine coloring
6. Have the child do repetitious strokes
(with an increasingly smaller writing
tool) similar to those found in
manuscript or cursive letters. In our next issue…
Emphasize accuracy, spacing and flow A brief article on how to mathematical skills.
or rhythm. Sometimes doing it to music If you have any questions, suggestions
helps. or concerns or if you would like to set an
appointment, please e-mail me at
aschembri@anglocolombiano.edu.co.