@our.tiny.moments
Written by Sally Galloway, Paediatric Occupational Therapist
If you've ever watched a child try to use scissors for the first time, you'll know it’s rarely a smooth experience. There’s concentration, frustration, bits of paper flying in the wrong direction, and often a fair amount of determination.
I've watched this scene play out hundreds of times in my 16 years as a paediatric occupational therapist, and more recently from the other side as a mum sitting at the kitchen table with my own children. What I always want parents and educators to know is this: within that messy, effortful process, something genuinely important is happening.
@raisingourlittleones
How fine motor skills support scissor skills
Fine motor skills refer to the small and precise movements made by the muscles of the hands,
fingers and wrists. These skills help us hold a pencil, do up buttons, use
cutlery, and eventually use scissors with confidence and control.
These skills develop gradually throughout childhood, beginning in infancy and continuing to refine well into the primary school years. They depend on a foundation of physical development including muscle strength in the hands and forearms, coordination between both hands, and the development of what is called the palmar arch, the natural curve across the palm that allows the hand to hold and manipulate objects with precision.
@the_new_forest_nest
Why scissors are more complex than they look
Using scissors is one of the most demanding fine motor tasks we ask young children to do. In my OT experience,
it's also one that parents often have fixed ideas about timelines for.
The reality is that cutting requires a child to do
all of the following simultaneously:
1. Hold the scissors correctly using a precise three-finger grip.
2. Coordinate both hands with each doing a different job.
3. Apply the right amount of force to open and close the blades.
4. Guide the scissors along a line while managing the paper with the other hand.
5. Maintain visual attention throughout.
When I explain it that way, parents often look genuinely surprised. For many young children, the challenge isn’t a lack of effort or interest;
it’s simply that their hands and brains
haven’t yet fully developed the coordination this task demands. And
that’s completely normal.
@raisingourlittleones
When are children ready to develop scissor skills?
This is the question I get asked most often, both in clinic and from parent friends. The honest answer is that it varies.
As a general guide, most children begin exploring scissors around age two or three with simple snipping activities (cutting playdough, thick straws or narrow strips of paper), develop the ability to cut along straight lines between four and five years, and manage more complex shapes by five or six.
But these are averages, not deadlines.
I'm very conscious of this both professionally and as a
mum. My own children hit different fine motor milestones at quite different ages, and what I know from years of clinical work is that pushing children toward a skill before
they're
ready tends to create anxiety around the task, not confidence.
Building scissor skills through play
Children
don’t develop the hand strength and coordination
needed for scissors in isolation. These skills are built through a wide range of everyday play activities, often without anyone
realising it.
This is something I love about well-designed play resources, because the best ones build fine motor skills while children are simply absorbed in what they are doing. My Creative Box is a great example of this. Each box includes a range of varied, hands-on activities that quietly build finger strength and dexterity through the process of creating, whether that is tearing, folding, sticking or manipulating small materials. Children are focused on making something they are genuinely excited about, and the fine motor work happens naturally in the background.
Other great foundation activities include playdough manipulation (squeezing, rolling and pinching) like the My Creative Box Dough Sensory Craft Kits, threading and lacing, using tweezers or pegs, peeling stickers, and picking up small objects.
Drawing, colouring and mark-making of all kinds also develop the muscles and coordination needed for both scissors and eventually writing.
I often describe this to families
as filling a developmental bucket. Every small activity throughout the day quietly adds to it, and by the time a child picks up a pair of scissors,
they're drawing on
all of those experiences and skills.
@our.little.farmer
Choosing the right scissors
Not all scissors are created
equal.
I’ve seen children in clinic
who'd been labelled as not ready for scissors, when in fact
they'd simply been given tools that were too big, too stiff, or not suited to their dominant hand.
For young children, look for scissors with soft rounded tips and blades sized for small hands. Spring-loaded scissors can be helpful for children still developing the muscle strength to open the blades independently. And if your child is left-handed, please make sure they have left-handed scissors. Using right-handed scissors with the left hand is significantly harder than most people
realise, and it is
a very simple fix that makes an enormous difference to a child's experience.
Making scissor skills fun
Cutting is a skill that develops with time and practice, and children learn best when the process feels enjoyable rather than pressured. Start with the simplest tasks and gradually build complexity – from snipping playdough or narrow strips of paper, to cutting along straight lines, then curves, and finally simple shapes.
Wherever possible, make the cutting part of something the child genuinely wants to create. This is where resources like My Creative Box are genuinely useful. The craft activities are designed with developmental stages in mind, so cutting is introduced as part of a project the child is invested in. That sense of purpose, of making something, is a powerful motivator and turns practice into creating.
Sit alongside children as they cut rather than hovering or taking over. Let them set the pace, let them make mistakes, and let them experience the satisfaction of working something out for themselves.
A final thought
The next time a child picks up their scissors and gets to work,
know that they are doing something genuinely complex and genuinely valuable. The wobbly line, the bit of paper cut a little too short – these are not mistakes.
They're the very process of learning, and
they're worth celebrating. Every snip is a small step toward independence, and
that's something worth getting excited about.
Disclaimer: The information in this post is general in nature and is intended for educational purposes only. It
does not constitute clinical advice and is not a substitute for assessment or support from a qualified allied health professional. If you have concerns about your child's fine motor development, please seek advice from an occupational therapist or other relevant health professional.
About the author
Sally Galloway is a
paediatric occupational therapist with
16 years of experience and the founder of Regulation Rituals®, The
Early Childhood Method. Over her career, Sally has worked with thousands of families and supported more than 650 early learning services across Australia to build environments and practices that truly work for all children. She is also the founder of a charity dedicated to children of all abilities. Sally lives on the Sunshine Coast with her husband, her two children, and their German Shorthaired Pointer, Leo. When she is not working, you will
most likely find her salty at the beach or somewhere out in nature.
