🎒 Getting Ready for 1st Grade · Lesson 4 of 7
Fine motor skills and pencil grip
Scissors, lines, drawing and writing their name.
Strong little hands
Writing needs strong hand muscles. Playdough, Legos, beads, clothespins, tearing paper, picking up small things with tweezers — all build the muscles for holding a pencil.
The pencil grip
The goal is a “tripod” grip: the pencil rests between the thumb and the pointer finger, supported by the middle finger. Short pencils and broken crayons help kids naturally use the right fingers.
Scissors
- Thumb up — “thumbs up” in the small hole
- Cut straight lines, then curves, then shapes
- The other hand holds and turns the paper
Writing their name
A capital letter first, then lowercase: “Sam”, not “SAM”. Teachers start the year with this. Lines, circles, crosses and diagonals are the building blocks of letters — practice them in sand, shaving cream or with sidewalk chalk.
Tip
💡 Draw on a vertical surface — an easel, a wall with paper, a window. It strengthens the wrist and shoulder.
✏️ Practice: your turn
- Play with playdough or Legos for 15 minutes
- Check the pencil grip and try a short pencil
- Cut along a straight line and a curvy line
- Practice writing their name with one capital letter
🧠 Quick quiz
Answer all 4 questions correctly to mark this lesson as done.
0 of 4 correct
All lessons in Getting Ready for 1st Grade
- 🌱 1. What “readiness” really meansFeelings, friends, independence and attention — and what isn’t expected
- 🔤 2. Sounds and lettersRhymes, first sounds, syllables and letters — the fun way
- 🔢 3. Numbers and first mathCounting, quantities, more and less, shapes and patterns
- ✏️ 4. Fine motor skills and pencil gripScissors, lines, drawing and writing their name
- 🧦 5. Independence and routinesBackpack, bathroom, lunchbox, sleep and mornings
- 💛 6. The emotional sideTalking about the change, saying goodbye, friends and confidence
- ☀️ 7. The summer plan15 minutes a day, what to buy, the first week, and who to call