Benefits of Scissor Cutting for Preschoolers and Fun and Easy Cutting Activities
In this post you will learn about the benefits of scissor cutting for preschoolers and you can get a variety of easy and simple ways you can work on cutting skills with your child at home or in the classroom.
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Benefits of Scissor Cutting for Preschoolers
Working on cutting skills with your preschooler can have a lot of benefits for them. I know handing over the scissors can be a nerve-racking task. I am here to help bridge the gap to ensure the cutting practice is a little more seamless to introduce. If you are worried about safety with cutting check out these tips.
Here are some benefits of scissor cutting for preschoolers and below you will find some fun hands on ways you can work on scissor skills.
1. Independent movements of each finger
The act of cutting using scissors is all about learning how to move each finger independently as well. Therefore, your child will learn to move the thumb, index, middle, ring, and pinkie fingers each at a time.
2. Strengthens hand and finger muscles
It is also a great way of strengthening not only fingers but also the hand. Using scissors will facilitate that since it involves using the fingers and squeezing the hands, which builds finger muscles. The movement of fingers while cutting paper with scissors is actually quite challenging for preschoolers. This challenge can strengthen the hand muscles.
3. Development of bilateral coordination skills (two-handed coordination)
Cutting with scissors builds bilateral coordination skills so they can use both hands together in a coordinated manner. It is essential because it encourages preschoolers to use both sides of their bodies at the same time. After all, one hand will be cutting, and the other one will be holding the paper and turning it accordingly.
The skill comes in handy when doing other life skills such as opening an envelope, buttoning a shirt, and zipping up a coat.
4. Visual-motor skills (eye-hand coordination)
Cutting along lines offers a way to gain accuracy and precision in eye-hand coordination skills.
The truth is that your child will need to use the hand to cut the paper or material of choice. Simultaneously, they will have to use the eyes to see what they are cutting to cut it as expected.
Doing the two tasks simultaneously will enhance eye-hand coordination. This skill also makes it easy for your kid to eat using a fork or spoon, zipping a coat and catching and throwing a ball.
5. Visual perceptual tasks (directionality)
When cutting a line along with a piece of paper, the child will need to be able to follow the line with their eyes and hands. When doing this, it will have a tremendous and positive impact on their visual perceptual skills. Visual perceptual skills enable a child to make sense of and interpret what they are seeing.
6. Fine motor skills (separation of hand, finger dexterity)
When cutting with scissors you will help develop your child's fine motor skills. When cutting they have to learn how to use the different muscles in their hands and fingers separately. This helps develop their finger dexterity and the separation of their hand muscles. This can also be helpful for other life skills such as handwriting, buttoning, and zipping up a coat.
7. Promotes grasp pattern
One of the most useful grasp patterns is the tripod grip, which involves using three fingers, middle, index, and thumb fingers. Given how one holds the scissors, using them to cut will help develop it. It will be of use later on since it also applies when fastening buttons and holding a pencil.
8. Focus and attention
Another importance of using scissors is to help with focus and attention. While cutting using scissors, the child will learn how to pay attention to details of where they need to cut and how to hold the paper. This skill can be helpful to help with focus and following directions.
9. Helps Determine the dominant hand
Your preschooler may start to develop using a dominant hand for tasks. Using scissors will help you and the child know which hand is dominant and the helping one. Your child will use the dominant hand to open and close the scissors and the helping one to hold the paper and rotate it if a need arises.
10. Can help them understand shapes
When your child is cutting out different lines and shapes it can help them have a better understanding of the shapes while they are cutting. They will have to learn the different between a straight line, curved line, corner, and zig zag. These things can be easily understood by the child when they realize the final shape it can form with the little cuts.
11. Cutting skills can boost confidence and self Esteem of preschoolers
When preschoolers learn to cut, it can boost their confidence as they have learned something new. This sense of confidence leads to boosting self-esteem in preschoolers. They can feel confident about learning other skills as well once they master the basics of cutting.
12. Scissor skills will help preschoolers to do their craft activities more on their own
If you can teach kids about using scissors during the early years, they can become more independent in their project work when they start school. They will better be able to follow the directions and need less help from the teacher with their craft activities.
Get your Free Cutting Skills Activities Bundle
You will get 56 pages of black and white images to help work on snipping, cutting lines, cutting zig zag lines, cutting curved lines, and cutting shapes!
Cutting Activities to Help your Preschooler with Scissor Skills
If you are looking for help with deciding what types of scissors to use with your preschooler to help them with their cutting skills take a look at these recommendations from a preschool teacher.
If your child is having difficulty cutting using paper, you can create sensory bins with different items for them to practice cutting up. Below is a list of items you can have them cut up.
Items your child can practice cutting to develop scissor skills:
- straws
- tape
- wrapping paper
- tissue paper
- ribbon
- shredded paper
- cooked spaghetti
- paper towel or toilet paper rolls
- yarn
- packing peanuts
- leaves
- dandelions
- paper plates
- bubble wrap
- paper paint samples cards
Hair Cutting Activities for Kids to Practice Scissor Skills
We also love creating different hair cutting activities for my kids to practice scissor skills. I try to keep all of my activities super simple and easy to set up in 5 minutes or less since I never know how my kids will like it or not.
Paper towel hair cutting
One way to do this is by using a toilet paper or paper towel roll and drawing a face on it. Then you can draw lines for them to cut or you can cut it into strips for them to cut and trim. They can make snips on the top to create different hair styles.
Yarn hair on a paper plate
Another way we have created a hair cutting activity is by using a paper plate and yarn. I have drawn a face on the paper plate and then I tapped long yarn strings to create hair on the paper plate. Then my kids can cut the yarn to different lengths to create a new hair style.
Construction paper wig on a baby doll head
Lastly, I have used construction paper to create a wig to go on a baby dolls head to also work on hair cutting styles.
How to help your Child with Holding the Scissors
Does your child have difficulty holding the scissors correctly while cutting?
Check out this great post about how to help your child hold the scissors correctly to help with cutting practice.
Get even More Free Printable Cutting Activities
Dinosaur Cutting Snips and Strips for Preschoolers to Learn Cutting Skills
Use this free download to help your preschooler learn the cutting skills with a fun dinosaur theme!! You can help them learn snipping, fringe, lines, zig zags, curved lines, and shapes!
