Red Flags for Fine Motor Skill Development
Are you concerned about your child’s fine motor development?
Here are crucial steps in the development of good fine motor skills that may help guide you to determine whether or not your child would benefit from an occupational therapy screening or evaluation.
Questions or concerns? Our occupational therapy experts are happy to assist. Email us at Askanexpert@llatherapy.org, or schedule an evaluation Here
Three Months
• Tracks moving objects or people from left to right and right to left
• Extends arms towards people or objects
• Brings hands together at middle of body
Six Months
• Extends only one arm towards a toy
• Grasps and moves rattle or toy through space
• Grasps a block with ring fingers, pinky fingers and palm
• Transfers object between hands
Nine Months
• Pokes or points with index finger
• Grasps a block with thumb, index, and middle fingers
• Uses a raking motion with fingers to pick up finger foods
• Removes items from a container
• Crumples paper with 1 or 2 hands
• Claps hands
Twelve Months
• Uses thumb and tip of index finger to pick up finger foods
• Holds two blocks in one hand
• Takes off socks
• Opens board book and attempts to turn pages
• Dumps things out and puts larger things in containers
Fifteen to Sixteen Months
• Grasps a marker or crayon with fisted grasp and thumb and index finger towards paper to scribble
• Puts small things in containers
• Stacks 2-3 blocks
Twenty Months
• Stacks 4-5 blocks
• Turns board book pages 1 at a time
• Feeds self with spoon and fork with spillage
• Completes simple shape puzzles
Twenty-Four to Thirty Months
• Imitates vertical and horizontal strokes with a crayon or marker
• Stacks 8-10 blocks
• Snips with scissors
• Strings beads
Thirty-Six to Forty-Two Months
• Shows a clear hand dominance
• Grasps marker or crayon with thumb and pad of index finger, other 3 fingers are secure against palm
• Feeds self with spoon and fork without spilling
• Copies circle and plus signs
• Unbuttons large buttons
• Cuts on a thick line
Forty-Three to Fifty Months
• Copies a square
• Cuts out a circle
• Begins to write name
• Buttons and unbuttons large buttons on clothing
• Engages zipper and zips coat
Red Flags
Contact us if your child is not moving both arms freely by 3 months, grasping objects by 6 months, using both hands in a coordinated manner by 9 months, finger feeding by 15 months, making purposeful marks on paper by 24 months, or does not have a hand dominance by 36 months. Other red flags include using middle finger and thumb instead of index finger and thumb and persistence of fisted grasp on crayons or markers after 36 months.
By Nicole Torres
By Nicole Torres