We love to use our pipettes for preschool fine motor art! Using pipettes strengthens the pincer grasp, important for future writing skills. In this activity, we set the paper vertically so that the paint could drip down the paper, creating a waterfall effect. It was a huge hit with our preschoolers!
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Preschool Fine Motor Art
Watch the video:
What you will need:
There are many different ways you could attach the paper horizontally. We use acrylic sign holders.
The process:
- Pour the tempera paint into the containers and thin with a bit of water.
- Add the pipettes to the containers.
- Place the acrylic stand(s) on the table.
- Attach a sheet of paper to each acrylic stand with some sort of clip.
Note: We placed a tray under the acrylic stand and then a paper towel on top of the tray to catch all the drips.
Each and every time we use pipettes, the children are fascinated how they can suction the paint in and out.
It takes a bit of practice using the pipettes, but once it’s mastered, the children love it!
Working on a vertical surface puts the wrist into an extended position. (You can read more about the benefits of working on a vertical surface here.)
What is fun about this activity is how the paint travels down the paper. You can see here why we place paper towel under the acrylic sign holder!
The colors merge as they flow down the paper.
Colorful waterfalls!
Bonus! Grab your copy of this fun scissor practice packet:
32 pages total of scissor practice activities in a age appropriate and developmental sequence. For preschool through 1st graders. For only $2.99 download your PDF digital product now!
Looking for more fine motor ideas?
- Squeezing Activities to Strengthen Hands
- 10 Simple Ways to Strengthen Fine Motor Skills
- Favorite Fine Motor Toys for 3 Year Olds
Ahhh, this is so wonderful Sheryl! My daughter loves using those pipettes to transfer water from container to container so she is going to be in love with this! Thank you for another amazing idea! 🙂
You are quite welcome, Rachel! 🙂
Sheryl, I work at an American preschool in Thailand. What suggestions do you have for making a vertical surface to do this project? I would love some ideas so that we could do this projects with our 3 and 4 year olds. (I am sure that we don’t have those acrylic stands.) Thanks for any advice!
Hi Melanie – I’ve seen them made with cardboard. Cut 2 squares the same side and use strong tape where they connect at the top (creating an upside down “V). I’ve also seen them made with pizza boxes. Hope this helps!
My first year teaching and I need to purchase on the cheap to stock my room with supplies for twelve 3 year olds. Where do I get the pipettes and is this activity done one at a time? Are the other children watching as they wait their turn or do you have a separate activity for them?
Hi Cindy – in the post I list the supplies needed. Click on “pipettes” and it will take you to the source of where they can be purchased. We do this activity during centers time, so children can work at this activity any time during that hour. We had 6 spots available. If all spots were taken, the other children worked in other areas of the room and came over when a spot opened up.
I teach a preschool class with children with autism and I love this idea. I am always looking for ways to incorporate fne motor into everything that we do since majority of my students struggle with that area. Also, after I do a painting exercise like the one listed, I tie it in with the spin art painting app on my i pad. I have the children use a stylus to select their desired paint colors to practice their pincer grasp. This is a great idea and I can’t wait to incorporate this in my class!
That is a great idea, Kelly!
Love this idea! Thanks for all the creative ideas you give us!
Thank you for the positive feedback, Carolyn!