10 Hands On Fine Motor Activity Ideas

I LOVE fine motor activities that keep students engaged and excited to strengthen their hands.

I decided to do a little round of up 10 of our favorite fine motor activities in our classroom.

Some of these activities can be made with materials you probably already have, some will require you to make simple things, and others will require you to buy some things. But they're all sure to make your students excited!

Structuring Math Groups in a Special Needs Classroom

It seems like every school year I'm tweaking our systems/ routines for  how we run groups. I do this for a few reasons:

• Students' needs change from year to year, so systems need to change too!
• I get bored and like a little change sometimes, and I know my entire class benefits from change too!
• When I reflect on past school years, I can often see gaps and what I can do better.

We mixed up how we are running math groups quite a bit this school year. We are heading into week 6 of the year and the new routine has honestly been great, so I want to share it with you!

Creating a Peace Corner or Calm Down Space in the Classroom

Teachers everywhere are starting to use peace corners or calm down corners to meet the social/ emotional needs of students.

First, everyone calls these spaces something different... For years I called ours a "calm down corner" but I'm trying to train myself to start calling it the "peace corner." I really don't see anything wrong with calling it a "calm down corner," I just think that a "peace corner" sounds a little more positive, so I'm trying to make the change.

So, for the rest of this post, I'm going to refer it as a peace corner. I will explain how we use our peace corner and share some tips for setting one up so students can learn to use it independently. 

3 Tips for End of Day/ Dismissal Routines in the Classroom

Dismissal time in the classroom can be really hectic and stressful for students AND staff... You're trying to dismiss numerous students within a few minutes , they're all going to different places, and safety is likely a concern at this time.

Good news though... there are things you can do to ease the stress during this time and make the transition go smoother! Here are 3 little tricks I've learned over the years that have helped our students and staff during dismissal time!

Implementing a Structured Snack Time in a Special Needs Classroom

I don't have a snack time in our classroom every year, but when the school day is long and lunch times are either really early or really late, it's definitely necessary!

Snack time in any classroom can be a hectic time time! In self-contained/ center-based classrooms, snack time can be even more overwhelming if structures and routines aren't in place to support students!

Check out how I structure and set up snack time so we can have a meaningful and calm snack time!