Learning & School Readiness

5 Developmental Skills Kids Can Learn from Arts and Crafts

By: Highlights Editorial
Child learning from crafting
1 minute to read
For All Ages
Creativity
Critical Thinking
Curiosity
Fine Motor Skills

Arts and crafts are a great way to bond with your child and foster developmental skills. To help your kids learn art, rustle up some supplies and start designing.

Here are just some of the developmental skills your preschooler learns while working on crafts:

Arts and crafts are a great way to bond with your child and foster developmental skills.

Following Directions

Being able to understand and follow directions is a skill that will be needed and used throughout life as your child prepares for grade school and beyond. Encouraging her to make her own creative choices along the way (while still adhering to the directions) can help foster her imagination too.

Focus and Concentration

While crafting, your preschooler learns to focus, concentrate and minimize distractions while mastering the use of scissors, glue and other crafting materials. Completing a craft project from start to finish requires concentration as well.

Fine Motor Skills

Drawing, picking up objects, cutting with scissors, turning pages in a book and pinching objects between fingers can all be used while crafting to build on your youngster's emerging fine motor skills.

Patience

Sometimes while crafting it is important that steps are followed in the correct order. Learning to wait for glue or paint to dry, for example, can be an effective way to teach your child the importance of being patient.

Early Problem Solving Skills

Early problem-solving skills can be taught by experimenting with craft materials and trouble shooting a project that does not turn out quite as expected. Do you have all of the materials needed to complete the craft? If not, is there something that could be substituted in its place? Try it and see what happens.

 

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By: Highlights Editorial