How to Use These Free Printables for Scissor Skills Development
From snipping to cutting on a longer path, use these free ocean-themed printables to help your preschoolers work on scissor skills development.
When I was a kid I used to spend hours at my little table cutting out pictures from mail-order catalogs. Yes….mail-order catalogs I know I’m dating myself. I’m old.
I loved cutting out pictures of toys and clothing for my Christmas and birthday wish lists. While I don’t remember getting any of the presents that I wished for, I sure had fun wishing and dreaming and getting cutting practice. I didn’t know it at the time, but while I was working on these wish lists, I was working on my fine motor skills. Specifically, the fun fine motor activity helped me learn to cut with scissors.
Today, I have some printables that will help your kids work on their scissor skills. These ocean-themed printables are part of my Scissor Skills Activity Resource...which includes a variety of themes to engage your kids.
Beginning Scissor Skills Development – Making Snips
Like everything else, scissor skills are developed with practice. Begin by helping them hold scissors correctly. After kids master the opening and closing of scissors, they are ready to begin making snips or small cuts in the paper. Give them scrap paper or wrapping paper and encourage them to make cuts around the edge of the paper.
Snip Sheets
When kids are able to make snips in paper, they can start trying to make a snip on a line. The snip sheets in my scissor skills resource have four thick, but short lines with pictures at one end. Kids can cut and reach the image with a single cut. Much like the images in my mail-order catalogs, the images on these printables create interest and excitement.
You can even make giggling noises as they reach each of the sea creatures….as if the creatures are being tickled by the scissors. Have fun and be silly.
Snip Strips
The next scissor skills printables are snip strips. Each strip includes images divided by dotted lines. The strips are thin enough so that kids can cut on the line and cut through them with a single snip.
This will give your kids the satisfaction of cutting completely through the strip with one cut. Kids enjoy cutting apart the images and can create a little collection of them. They can count them, sort them, identify them, color them.
Cutting on a Longer Path
After mastering the art of snipping, kids can learn to move their scissors forward after each snip to cut a longer path.
Four Levels of Cutting Paths
The printables include 4 levels of cutting paths for kids to use for practice. The straight line will be the easiest for kids to master. When they get the hang of that, they can try the mild curve, the zig-zag, and then the wave. They can start at the bubbles and cut through to the ocean creatures.
Get the Free Ocean-Themed Cutting Resources
Are you ready to use these printables to help your kids work on scissor skills development? Complete the form on THIS PAGE and I will set you up to receive weekly ideas for Early Learning Ideas….AND I’ll send a set of ocean-themed fine motor printables (that includes scissor skills pages) directly to your inbox.
Cutting Resources for 15 Different Themes
Try out the ocean-themed printables with your kids. If you want similar printables for 15 different themes, you can purchase the complete set of Fine Motor Scissor Skills Activities from my store. You can also get a variety of fine motor activity printables with the Fine Motor Activities Bundle.
