We aren’t JUST cutting. It is bigger than that! Cutting with scissors actually helps to develop many other essential skills which translate into our ability to perform a variety of important daily activities.
Strengthens hand muscles
Opening and closing scissors helps children build up the small muscles in their hands required for everyday activities such as drawing, brushing teeth, and getting dressed.
Bilateral coordination
Bilateral coordination is the ability to perform opposite or coordinated actions with each side of the body simultaneously. With cutting, one hand holds the paper, while the other hand manipulates the scissors. Development of this skill is important for a variety of everyday functional activities such as getting dressed.
Visual motor skills/eye-hand coordination
Cutting is a complex task that requires use of our eyes and hands together. Eye-hand coordination is important for things like using a spoon or catching a ball.
Visual perceptual skills
With cutting activities, we must visually distinguish between each shape we intend to cut and we must follow the outlines appropriately.
Fine motor skills- including motor separation of hand and finger dexterity
Cutting requires use of the thumb, index, and middle finger together which helps to facilitate the development of a neat pencil grasp for writing.
Focus and attention
Cutting requires intense concentration. The ability to maintain focus and attention is required for many other daily activity demands such as reading and writing.
Resources:
1. Bishop, Dena. “What Are the Benefits of Cutting with Scissors for Young Children? Dena Bishop.” Continued Early Childhood Education, 17 Apr. 2018, www.continued.com/early-childhood-education/ask-the-experts/what-benefits-cutting-with-scissors-22719.
2. “Ready, Steady, Cut: Scissor Skills for Preschoolers.” Educa, 25 Sept. 2017, www.geteduca.com/blog/scissor-skills-for-preschoolers/.
3. Levin, Vanessa. “Tips for Teaching Scissor Cutting Skills.” Pre, 25 Mar. 2020, www.pre-kpages.com/tips-for-teaching-scissor-cutting-skills/.
4. Therapyfunzone. “Visual Motor Skills and Cutting With Scissors.” Therapy Fun Zone, 22 June 2016, therapyfunzone.net/blog/visual-motor-skills-cutting-scissors/.