Motor and Fine Motor Skills

• Gross Motor Skills


  Physical skills that involve the large muscles.
• Large muscle movements: Gross motor skills involve the use of large muscle groups in the body, such as those in the legs, arms, torso, and core.
• Fundamental movements: These skills are essential for basic physical activities like walking, running, jumping, climbing, skipping, and throwing.
• Develop early: Gross motor skills develop relatively earlier in childhood as children gain control over their larger muscle groups.
• Gross motor skills

  Rolling over (infants)

  Crawling (infants)

  Sitting up (infants)

  Standing and walking (toddlers)

  Running (toddlers)

  Jumping (preschoolers)

  Climbing stairs (preschoolers)

  Throwing and catching a ball (preschoolers)
• Fine Motor Skills


  Physical skills that involve the small muscles and eye–hand coordination.
• Small muscle movements: Fine motor skills involve the coordinated use of smaller muscle groups, particularly in the hands, wrists, and fingers.
• Precision and control: These skills require a high degree of dexterity, control, and coordination for precise movements.
• Develop later: Fine motor skills develop gradually over time as children refine the control and coordination of their smaller muscle groups.
• Fine motor skills

  Grasping small objects (infants)

  Picking up objects with a pincer grasp (toddlers)

  Holding a crayon or pencil for drawing (preschoolers)

  Buttoning and unbuttoning clothes (preschoolers)

  Cutting with scissors (preschoolers)

  Tying shoelaces (school-age children)

  Writing neatly (school-age children)