Fine Motor Play with Flowers

For my 30th birthday, my best friend surprised me with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers.  So when they began to wilt, I felt guilty about just throwing them out.  I decided to cut off the majority of the stems and put the flowers and leaves into a sensory bin, in hopes to encourage some extra fine motor practice.  Then I remembered that Lalymom also did 10 fine motor activities with flowers, so there are definitely lots of ways to play and learn with flowers!

The flowers themselves would be a fun sensory experience for the boys.  However, I wanted the focus to be on fine motor skills.  I set out two pairs of scissors and a pair of tongs.  K really enjoys using tongs, so he spent his time picking up leaves and flowers from the bin.

J, on the other hand, favored the scissors.  He went to town cutting the flowers and leaves.

One thing that I have always noticed that J does when cutting, is that he opens and closes his mouth in rhythm with the scissors.  The photo below captures exactly that.  Scissors are open and so is his mouth.  Cute, right?  I also adore this photo for many reasons, right down to his gorgeous eyelashes and the lips that remind me of his newborn baby photos.  Ah, he's grown up so much!

Okay, moving on from my sentimental mushiness, I leave you with the gorgeous array of freshly cut flower petals, leaves, and stems.  A colorful fine motor work of art.

Looking for more ways to practice scissor skills?  Try these other creative ideas: Music Themed Cutting Tray and Sticky Constellations or be sure to follow my Fine Motor Activities board on Pinterest.