Dinosaurs and animals are everything to my toddlers! I, honestly, don’t know where we would be without them. We have big ones, small ones, some that move, some on wheels, and everything in between! No matter which type my littles are using, they just bring a special element to our play. Ideally, I’d love to collect a complete set from a top notch vendor, but my sweeties don’t know the difference right now. All they know is that they are perfect to line up, stuff in backpacks, ride the dinosaur train, and use in sensory bins. And like our animal figures, the dinosaurs are used for just about everything!
One of my favorite things to do with our dinosaurs and animals, is to create activities that focus on fine motor skills. Whether it’s squeezing play dough, cutting with scissors, coloring a picture, peeling stickers or lacing beads; fine motor skills are EVERYTHING in those early years! I’ve come across too many kiddos while teaching Kindergarten who didn’t have a whole lot of fine motor practice in their toddler years. And sadly, they struggled with tasks like writing, cutting, and coloring in school. That right there is why I am such an advocate for fine motor activities during those first 5 years of life (and beyond). And dinosaurs are the perfect toy to embrace fine motor practice with.
For this particular activity, I used our awesome wooden block set from Smiling Tree Toys and a variety of our small dinosaurs to engage my littles.
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Materials
- Small dinosaur figures
- Wooden block set
- Eager toddler!
Have a school-aged kiddo, or want to challenge your little a bit more? Check out our advanced version of balancing dinos – Balancing Dinosaurs – Bridges. It’s the perfect challenge!
Just like any toddler, my kiddos loooove imaginative play. It is a tool that I use anytime I am trying to engage them in an activity. (Or trying to get them to clean up, haha!) I simply make up a story or scenario that requires their immediate attention, and then let their little big imaginations do the rest!
For this Balancing Dinosaurs Activity, I put out our block set and started placing the blocks randomly on the floor. I laid some long, stood some up and varied the positions as I went. As soon as I sat down to start ‘building’ with the blocks, I immediately caught the attention of my 4 year old. No words were needed. He saw me begin an ‘activity’, as my littles call it, and was instantly interested in what I was doing.
Once I had all of the blocks set out, I walked to the playroom and, using a basket we received for Valentine’s Day, began collecting small dinosaurs. This is what caught my 2 year old’s attention. He was immediately on my heels asking what I was doing, where the dinosaurs were going, if he could help, etc. Again, no words needed! I didn’t have to call the kiddos over and tell them we were going to do an activity, I simply began setting it up and perked their interest.
Related: Do you have a little who loves dinosaurs? Check this out for hours of fun!
I brought the basket of dinosaurs back to the blocks and my sweet little (not quite) one year old was already ‘playing’, haha. This is actually an activity that he can engage in as well! Keep reading to see how, wink wink. Once I sat down with the dinos, I looked at my toddlers and, with great enthusiasm, said, “Oh no! the floor is turning to hot lava by the dinosaurs! Let’s help them get to safety! Quick, carefully put each dino on the blocks, they’ll be safe there!” And, getting into that imaginative play, my littles started a dialogue about how they needed to save the dinosaurs and get them to safety. Simple. As. That.
Let The Fine Motor Practice Begin!
One by one, my toddlers extracted the dinosaurs from their basket and carefully balanced them on the blocks. Some dinosaurs were easier to stand up than others and they had to put their thinking caps on to figure out how to balance a few. The point? They were working those little fingers! Pinching each dinosaur and using coordination and control to place it on the block. I just sat back and smiled as my littles did exactly what I had hoped they would do. I feel like I deserve a gold star or a pat on the back…am I right?!
Related: Looking for a quick and fun way to clean it all up? Check out this ingenious activity that will keep everyone happy!
What I love the most about this activity is that it took me exactly 2 minutes to set up! And it can be set up again, and again, and again! Too easy! As for the baby? As my toddlers put the dinosaurs on each block, he would crawl over, remove a dino and place it back in the basket. Haha, something for everyone and a never ending activity!
The beauty in this type of activity is that you can use anything you have at home. You can also change up the materials regularly to keep it fresh and interesting. Dinos this week, small animals next week, and maybe pom poms the following week! The possibilities are virtually endless!
Need a Challenge?
Looking for a greater challenge? Try giving your little tongs to use instead of their hands. That way, they have to be strategic about how they pick up each dino and problem solve as they figure out how to balance it without their fingers to help.
How do you play with dinosaurs in your home?
Thank you so much for reading, sweet friend! As always, you can find us over on Pinterest and see what we are up to on Instagram. Follow along to see what is inspiring our play!
Looking for more fine motor fun? Check out our Sensory Bin Animal Match activity!
