Deb’s Key Takeaways:

Skills needed for development of early fine motor milestones:

  • Gross motor skills
  • Vision
  • Cognition/social skills
  • Fine motor skills

Ways to encourage fine motor (hand skill) development:

  • Exposure to tummy time
  • Provide lots of visual stimulation
  • Give them different touch experiences

Ways to encourage your baby’s fine motor development:

0-3 months

  • Let them hold your finger from birth
  • Give your baby lots of sensory experiences
    • Hand lotion, soft/hard toys, different textures
  • Place rattles in their hand
  • Give them lots of tummy time
  • Hang mobiles/toys for them to hit when in pram/cot

3-6 months

  • Encourage them to reach for dangly objects
  • Offer toys when they are silly on your lap
  • Offer lots of different sensory experiences in bath/on tummy
  • Introduce self-feeding and messy play
  • Give them toys to hold with both hands
  • Play peek-a-boo – encourage baby to lift the blanket
  • Use suction toys on high chair

When to ask for help:

  • If your baby isn’t following your face or toy by 2-3 months
  • If your baby is not meeting gross motor milestones
  • If your baby continues to keep their hands fisted past 2-3 months
  • If your baby isn’t reaching for a toy and holding by 4 months
  • If your baby doesn’t play with both hands together by 5-6 months
  • If your baby is not picking up small objects (e.g. self-feeding) by 6 months