Developing Scissors Skills: Classroom Tips and Activities
Fine motor skills are an important part of childhood development. Building small muscle movements in the hands and fingers is essential for writing, dressing, eating, and manipulating small toys and objects—ultimately helping kids feel more independent. Cutting with scissors significantly helps kids improve these skills, and using the appropriate-size scissors helps ensure a natural grip so kids can focus on the task at hand. Want to find the right-sized scissors for your students? Check out our blog article, Fiskars: Scissors Sizes for Your Students.
Top benefits of using scissors include:
- Muscle Development: Continuously opening and closing the hand while cutting builds essential muscles in the palm.
- Hand-Eye Coordination: Cutting requires kids to precisely guide the blade along the cutting line while tracking it with their eyes.
- Bilateral coordination: Kids must engage both sides of their bodies by holding the paper down with one hand and cutting with the other.
- Focus and Attention: Cutting engages visual tracking and fine motor skills simultaneously, which actively engages the brain and improves concentration.
Download a cutting activity to use in your classroom! These activities were developed specifically for elementary school students by our friends and scissors experts at Fiskars.
Butterfly Jar: Bring the lifecycle of a butterfly to life with this fun cutting activity. Students can cut out the pictures and name each lifecycle stage, then cut out the jar and draw their own critter inside.
Student grade level: Pre-K-1
Days of the Week Paper Chain: Have students color, cut out, and sequence the days of the week, then fasten them together to make a fun paper chain. Removing each day as it passes helps kids visually understand and identify each weekday.
Student grade level: Pre-K-1
Garbage or recycling? This cutting activity helps kids decipher which item qualifies as garbage and which can be recycled to be used again. Have students cut out each item and glue them to the appropriate truck.
Student grade level: Pre-K-1
Build a Funny Face: Have students cut out the face shape and choose their favorite features, then glue them together to create a face that will make them smile.
Student grade level: Pre-K-1
Make a Wreath: A wonderful way to complement lessons on seasonal changes and symmetry—have students color each piece of foliage, then cut along the dotted lines to create a wreath shape. Students can then glue the leaves onto the wreath to create a beautiful work of art.
Student grade level: 2-5
Volcanic Eruption: Discuss the different parts of a volcanic eruption, then have students color the volcano parts, cut them out, and glue them together. You could then have students label the different parts of the volcano or write about how a volcano erupts in their own words.
Student grade level: 2-5
Enter to win a pair of scissors from Fiskars®! Check out how you can win a pair of Fiskars Scissors in Playful Posies. These adult-size scissors have premium performance and exceptional comfort—perfect for cutting craft supplies and making visual aids for the classroom. 50 teachers will win!
