I love creating multi-faceted activities for our little nugget to complete. And she always appreciates the opportunity to perform a multitude of different tasks. This Color, Cut & Glue – Shapes exercise is perfect! It’s quick and easy to prepare, explores three distinct elements, and provides ample opportunity to learn about a variety of different shapes.
Sometimes the simplest of activities turn out to be the most loved. Our daughter had a blast with this shapes exercise…from start to finish. She was fully engaged and completely ecstatic about being tasked with a three-step project! I have a feeling that your little ones will be just as enthusiastic. π
Color, Cut & Glue – Shapes
To complete this project, you will need the following supplies:
- White Paper or Card Stock
- Black Marker
- Colored Pencils/Crayons/Markers
- Scissors
- Glue Stick
- Sheet of Background Paper
Start by cutting squares from the white paper or card stock. Cut a square for each shape that you would like to create. Using the black marker, draw a dotted outline of each shape on the squares of white paper – one shape per square. Feel free to label each shape as well…it’s a great way for little ones to associate the name of the shape with the picture. Once your shapes are drawn and labeled, hand them to your kiddos (along with some coloring utensils) and let their creativity run wild!
Coloring is an excellent way to help kids unwind and focus. It also promotes the use of fine motor skills, as well as hand-eye coordination. Coloring is one of our little nugget’s favorite activities…she usually completes at least one coloring project every single day!
Next, it’s time to cut out all the shapes. Our daughter has recently become obsessed with using the scissors, and since our child-safe toddler scissors were not working well on our card stock, she got the added luxury of using the grown-up scissors. She was in heaven! And she did an excellent job! Scissor skills play an incredibly important role in helping develop those all important fine motor skills. The opening and closing motion of the scissors work the small muscles in our hands…which are crucial for being able to grip and manipulate pencils and pens. Cutting with scissors also promotes coordination. It’s not easy to hold a piece of paper in one hand and cut it with the other hand, all while tracking the movement of the scissors with your eyes.
The final step consists of gluing all of the shapes onto the sheet of background paper. Our little nugget loves using glue sticks…and being able to design and decorate her sheet of paper with all of her colorful shapes was the cherry on top!
Another fun way to learn about shapes is with this simple Shapes Sponge Painting activity!
