Motor Minutes  

September 2019 

Greetings 
The purpose of Motor Minutes is to support our teachers and students by sharing 
quick, easy motor tasks that can be incorporated into the traditional school 
day--whether it be during down time, centers, or transitions.   

FINE MOTOR: ​ ​the ​coordination between the small muscles of our body (e.g. hands and fingers), 
with the eyes. In school, students require fine motor coordination to complete writing, coloring, 
cutting and manipulative tasks.   

Did you know that stringing beads works on 

fine motor coordination, visual motor 
integration and bilateral hand coordination 
skills? This basic skill provides the 
foundation for using two hands together at 
midline, as needed in many school-related 
tasks, such as writing, cutting, and 
manipulating clothing fasteners.   
 
This activity can be upgraded or downgraded 
to meet the needs of your students by using 
different sized beads, different types of 
laces/strings, and incorporating different 
types of academic skills into the activity, such 
as colors, patterns, shapes, letters, words, 
  numbers, etc.   

 
  

GROSS MOTOR: ​Gross motor skills involve the large muscles of the body (legs, arms, core). In 
school, students require gross motor coordination to be able to engage in activities such as 
walking, running, kicking a ball, sitting upright on the floor or at a desk, lifting, throwing a ball, 
and climbing stairs. 

   
  Balancing on one foot is a great way to 
  strengthen muscles of the lower body 
  including the foot, ankle, knee, hip, and 
abdominals. Balance is important for being 
able to navigate around classroom furniture, 
go up and down the stairs quickly, and climb 
on playground equipment.  
 
TRY BOTH LEGS​, start with 2-3 seconds and 
try to build up to 20 seconds per side without 
wobbling. 
 
Easiest​: Stand behind your chair, hold onto 
  the back of the chair, and lift one foot.  
Medium​: Stand behind your chair without 
touching chair, lift one foot. 
Harder​: Stand on one foot, away from support 
surfaces, with your eyes open. 
Hardest​: Stand on one foot, away from 
support surfaces, with eyes closed.  

Thank You 
We welcome you to share any ideas that you would like us to incorporate into the 
Newsletter and/or that would be helpful to your fellow teachers. Looking forward to 
future brainstorming!

Caroline E. Welch, OTD, MS, OTR/L Erica Huber, PT, DPT 

cwelch@burlcoschools.org ehuber@burlcoschools.org 

Educational Services Unit: 2

​ 0 Pioneer Blvd., Westampton, NJ 08060 P
​ hone: 609-702-0500