How to keep little hands busy and learning

Jennifer Gilbert, OT

Pediatric Therapy

Parents of young children are always looking for ways to help little hands stay busy. “The challenges of balancing work, family structure, and life events can result in less time for experiences essential for a young child’s development,” said occupational therapist Jennifer Gilbert.

She offered some ideas of indoor activities for children ages 2–5 to keep them occupied and helpful while also encouraging hand skill development and strength. 

Laundry

• Help transfer clothing to and from dryer or laundry basket
• Fold washcloths in half
• Stack folded towels or wash clothes to form towers
• Remove clothespins from line or clothing
• Hang clothes with clothespins 
• Hang clothing on hangers  

Kitchen

• Open containers and unscrew caps
• Pick up and transfer food using a fork or spoon
• Transfer cut fruit from cutting board to a bowl
• Help serve food on plates
• Stack nesting measuring cups and bowls
• Pour liquids from small containers and mixing ingredients in a large bowl
• Match and sort silverware, empty the dishwasher
• Wipe down counter tops
• Prepare food (with adult supervision):
  • Peel banana
  • Roll cookie or pizza dough with a rolling pin
  • Use cookie cutters
  • Stir thick cake, cookie or brownie batter
  • Beat eggs
  • Peel hardboiled eggs
• Learn to follow a simple recipe
  • Print a picture for each step
  • Ages 2-3 can tear pictures out of magazines
  • Ages 4-5 can use scissors with supervision to cut out pictures
  • Tear out pictures from magazines of dinner and snack ideas 

Dressing

• Open/close large buttons
• Use Velcro fasteners on clothing and shoes
• Coordinate arms and legs into openings
• Put on socks
• Unzip clothing
• Snap fasteners
• Lace shoes (should be independent by age 4)
• Dress independently by age 5