Sticker activities for fine motor development

What is it about stickers that kids love? To be honest, it’s not just kids – we know of a fair few adults who also adore a pretty sticker or two! And (additional benefit alert!), whether they’re nice to look at, functional or just a bit of fun, stickers are a great tool for our kids who need some fine motor help.

When using stickers as part of fine motor activities for children that need to develop these skills, it’s important to choose stickers that are easy to peel and manipulate. Avoid stickers that are too small or have intricate designs that may frustrate the child. Once you’ve found your perfect set of stickers here are some activities to try…

Sticker sorting: Provide a variety of stickers in different shapes, colours, and sizes. Encourage your child to sort the stickers based on these attributes, using their fingers to peel and place the stickers into designated categories.

Sticker puzzles: Create simple sticker puzzles by cutting a picture or design into pieces and sticking each piece onto a separate sticker. Your child can then reassemble the puzzle by placing the stickers in the correct order.

Sticker art collage: Start with a blank piece of paper or a canvas and a collection of stickers and try to create a collage by sticking the stickers onto the surface to form a picture or design. This activity helps improve hand-eye coordination and creativity.

Sticker tracing: Draw outlines of shapes, letters, or numbers on a piece of paper. Have your child trace these outlines using stickers, peeling them off and carefully placing them along the lines. This activity promotes fine motor control and precision.

Sticker stories: Encourage storytelling by giving your child a blank book or paper with stickers related to different characters or objects. Ask them to create a story using the stickers as visual prompts, arranging and sticking them onto the pages as they narrate the tale.

Sticker puppets: Place face/body park stickers on fingers and hands and create a puppet show! Great for language development too.

Sticker maze: Draw a maze on a piece of paper and provide stickers for you child to use to navigate through the maze. They can place stickers along the correct path, enhancing their fine motor control and problem-solving skills.

Sticker tic-tac-toe: Draw a tic-tac-toe grid on paper and use stickers as game pieces. The child can take turns with a partner placing stickers in the grid to play the game, promoting strategic thinking and finger manipulation.

Sticker transfer activities: Provide stickers on a sheet of wax paper or plastic. Encourage your child to peel off the stickers and transfer them onto another surface, such as a greeting card, bookmark, or art project. This activity works on finger dexterity and coordination.

Sticker relay race: This one is great for gross motor skills and also blowing off some steam! Set up a relay race where players have to peel a sticker from one point and transfer it to another designated point before passing the task to the next participant. This activity incorporates speed, coordination, and fine motor skills in a playful competition.