I am excited to partner with Wikki Stix today to bring you this GIVEAWAY and post on how to strengthen a pencil grip through play!
Please leave a comment at the bottom of this post to enter the giveaway.
We all know how important play is for children. Play builds creativity and imagination and it is actually through play that children learn. Play is also critical to later physical skills, such as hand strength and pencil grips.
I have heard of some growing concern that little ones are coming to school with a very weak to non-existent pencil grip. Experts suggest this is because of increased screen time, which is an incredible concern since it means this screen time is taking the place of play.
We need to give our little ones plenty of time to play for so, so many reasons!
To combat the pencil grip issue, and to reinforce how these skills easily emerge through play, I have compiled a list of 5 easy ways to help support the development of a proper pencil grip — all through play.
To make things even simpler, all 5 of these activities use the incredibly versatile (and one of our favourite toys) Wikki Stix! One package of Wikki Stix lasts pretty much forever, can be used again and again, and is completely mess free. These great Stix are a fabulous alternative to clay while holding all of the same benefits.
Here are my 5 playful ways to strengthen a pencil grip:
Twisting Wikki Stix:
Do the twist! Grab two strands of Wikki Stix and get your little ones twisting! This twisting motion is excellent for strengthening a tripod grasp, which is a critical skill for developing a pencil grip. Twist a few colours together, twist a big thick rope, see if you can twist a really long skinny rope.
Rolling Wikki Stix into a ball:
Get on a roll! A great way to strengthen the whole hand is by rolling Wikki Stix into a ball. Little hands can put a Stix in one palm and use the other hand to roll it into a ball. This takes some practice and might be easier with a few Stix to begin, as it will make a larger ball. Balls can also be rolled on a table top using one palm.
Creating pictures on a table top:
My kids love making table top pictures using Wikki Stix. They will create beautiful and elaborate scenes. By holding one end of the Wikki Stix still while moving the other end to create shapes and pictures, ‘bilateral coordination’ increases which is the skill needed to hold the piece of paper while writing.
Thread beads onto Wikki Stix:
Wikki Stix jewellery is all the rage. We love using Wikki Stix to thread beads, as they are quite sturdy Stix, making it easier for little hands to thread the beads. This improves the pincer grasp, which is using the thumb and first finger. A proper pincer grasp is another skill needed for a proper pencil grip.
Creating 3D Objects:
Manipulating and moulding Wikki Stix is a great way to strengthen the whole hand and get those hands nice and strong for holding a pencil. A great way to encourage lots of moulding is by creating 3D images. Tiny animals, people and things can easily be made 3 dimensional with Wikki Stix.
There you have them! Five fun ways to get those little hands primed and ready for all that lay ahead. And wonderful and meaningful play and learning for right now as well.
Here is to bringing back play (and pencil grips too!)
I want to thank Wikki Stix for partnering with me on this project. If you are interested in getting some Wikki Stix for your little ones you can find them in so many places!
They are available in many craft and toy stores, on Amazon, and directly on the Wikki Stix Website too.
GIVEAWAY!!!!!! Giveaway is now closed.
Wikki Stix is generously offering a giveaway to one lucky winner. To be entered to win a TRIPLE PAK of Wikki Stix please simply leave a comment below. This giveaway is open to US Readers only.
This Giveaway is now closed. Thank you for entering and congratulations to Connie!!
Thank you so much for reading friends. I hope you are having a wonderful week.
We would love to add Wikki Stix to our fine motor center! Love them!!
Awesome Wendy! Thank you for entering, good luck!
Collecting Bysy Box stuff for lil grand son!
Oh these are great for Busy Boxes Polly! Thank you for entering – good luck!
Thanks for all the wonderful ideas! Love trying them out with my little one. Can’twait To try wikki stix.
Thank you Amy! Good luck!
Love the idea of this product, never heard of it before! We love to have table time with my three young ones and am constantly looking for new crafts or products to try with them!
Oh I just love when I get to introduce Mama’s to an awesome new product!! Perfect for table time! Thank you for entering Jossie, good luck!
Love these ideas for Wikki Sticks!
Great Pam!! Thank you for entering, good luck!
I would love to introduce these stix to our classroom
Thanks for entering Kim, good luck!
We love Wikki Stix!!
Yay!! Thank you for entering, good luck!
These are great ideas! My favorite is twisting them together, my son will love that. We also like to make pinwheels with them.
Pinwheels are great ideas! Thanks for sharing and for entering the giveaway. Good luck!
Great ideas! What’s a good age to start?
Thank you Meredydd! My little ones started to use Wikki Stix when they were about two, maybe two and a half. It is one of those very versatile things, as my teenager still loves creating with Wikki Stix! Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!
I plan to use these ideas as arrival activities with my four-year olds. We have been doing lots of activities to strengthen our finger muscles, and I keep telling them how important it is to make our fingers strong!
Oh that is wonderful Becky – makes my day! Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!
Our children love these and use them all the time.
Glad to be in good company! Thank you for entering Jason, good luck!
Awesome ideas live wiki stixs
Thank you for entering Mellanie! Good luck!
Great ideas! I’ve never seen these! My son would love these! He would love to twist them together to make things.
They are really so cool! Thank you for entering Jamie, good luck!
I love this idea for strengthening grip. It’s such an important skill for little ones. My kiddos are super creative so I can’t wait to see what they create.
Creativity is such a wonderful trait!! Thank you for entering the giveaway – good luck!
Great info; thanks so much! I’ve been so overwhelmed trying to homeschool my 3 year old son (also have a 1year old daughter). We’re starting to work on writing letters, so this comes in handy!❤️
Oh great! Please email me and I would be happy to give you a few more ideas and offer some support and guidance Monica! You can reach me here: HowWeeLearn@gmail.com. Thank you for entering the giveaway! Good luck!
I love wikisticks. My twos and threes love twisting them together.
Awesome – thank you for entering the giveaway Kimberly!
I love wikki stix. It is such a great product.
Completely agree! Thank you for entering the giveaway Jessica – good luck!
I have seen these stixs in action! I love them! They are definitely useful tools. Wonderful tips on using them! Such fun and creative ideas!
Excellent Thea! Thank you! And thank you for entering the Giveaway – good luck!
So Cool! I had never heard of Wikki Stix! Would love to give them a try!
They are super neat Susye. Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!
My kids have never used these before but they sure look like fun!
They really are Andrea – thank you for entering, good luck!
My grandson would love these! Love all your ideas!
Aw, thank you Rachel. Good luck!
I have seen and used Wikki Stix before but did not think of how good it would be
for fine motor skills! Great ideas!
Thank you Robin, and thank you for entering the giveaway! Good luck!
These tips are great. I have a kindergarten grandchild who probably needs to practice them.
Thank you for entering Cathie, good luck!
Wikki Stixs are the best. Previous to me staying home, I used them in the classroom to build letters and words. The kids loved them. At home, we use them to build creatures:) Super fun! Thanks for the chance to win!
Wow these look amazing! I’ve never heard of these! I sure my boys would loves these. It would b a great quiet time thing for my younger one to do while i homeschool my eldest!!
These Stix are perfect for that!! Thank you for entering Julia, good luck!
Thank you for introducing this great idea to me. Perfect for my preschool class. I am always looking for activities that children can do independently that also develop the small muscles.
Wonderful Louise, so glad these ideas are helpful to you. Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!!
It is wonderful to see our little ones are learning and growing with Wikki Stixs through play.
Thank you for entering the giveaway Kathy, good luck!
Love wiki sticks. The really long ones they came out with a few years ago are great for teaching cursive letters.
Oh that is a fabulous idea!!!! Thank you Linda for entering our giveaway – good luck!
Wow. Thank you
I remember playing with these (or something like them) as a kid. So glad you did a post about them to remind me of how fun these are!
Wiki Stix are MUCH easier for outlining pictures or shapes to help little one understand coloring snide borders than piping that border with glue and waiting for it to dry! We really enjoy them for many activities in my classroom.
What a great idea Jeanne! Thank you for sharing and for entering the giveaway – good luck!!
What great ideas! I love that it is a simple and fun activity with no prep time (or mess!) but yields great benefits. Thanks for the chance to win some Wikki Stix!
Thank you Caryn, good luck!!
I would love to utilize the Wikki sticks in my Occupational Therapy sessions with kids
Excellent Vicky, thank you for entering!
I love Wikki stix! I have 5 kids, 4 of them 8 years and under. We would love to get some wiki stix! Thank you for all the ideas!
My goodness, what a busy Mama!! You are an inspiration! Thank you for entering the giveaway – good luck!
We are eagerly awaiting the adoption of our little granddaughter after years of waiting. I would be thrilled to play with Wikki Stux with her to get her ready to write the Great American Novel!! As a writer myself, I know that developing her motor writing skills is very, very important. Please pick us!
How exciting for your family Melanie!! Congratulations! Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!!
I would love these to help my granddaughter. She is behind and the Stix would help greatly. Thanks for all you do.
That is wonderful of you Becki, I love seeing grandparents helping their little grandchildren. What a blessing you are! I always try to remind myself to not compare my children to others and instead focus on ‘progress’. As long as my little ones are progressing, no matter how slowly, I know we are doing just fine. I hope some of these activities will help you to see some progress. Thank you for entering the giveaway – Good luck!
I had forgotten about Wikki Stix! Thanks for reminding me about how useful they are!
Yay! SO happy to be your reminder. Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!!
I love you! I am thrillled to have found this blog. You are such a blessing. Thank you for all your brilliant ideas xo
Aw, thank you so much for your kind words! I am so thrilled you found my blog too and I am so happy I am being helpful! That is the greatest compliment I could receive. Thank you for entering the giveaway – good luck!
What a fab idea. I am a childminder with 3/4 children who will really benefit from this activity. Thanks for all the wonderful ideas on how to strenghthen the pincer grips. Sure my charges will love them
I am so glad you found them helpful Paula – good luck!
How awesome! Would love to try these
Thank you for entering the giveaway Delilah! Good luck!
I am doing this. I have 5 boys who have whole hand pencil grip and I am at my wits end. PICK ME!
It can be so tough when little hands just aren’t ready. These playful activities will help your little guys build their hand strength and with some time and lots of play they will get there!! Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!
I am a retired Kdg. teacher and used Wikki Stixs as part of our Brain Box activities. The kids loved them. Now I’d like to use them with my grandchildren.
Wonderful Janice!! They are perfect for Brain Boxes! Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!
These are great ideas! I love your blog!
These are great!! My son would love these, and they would be great to build his hand strength and dexterity. Great to have more options out there 🙂
Absolutely! Thank you for entering the giveaway Kristen, good luck!
Haven’t used Wiki Stix with my special ed preschoolers yet but these sound like so much fun. We would love to get some for our classroom. Love the ideas.
Thank you
You will love them Connie, thank you for entering the giveaway! Good luck!!
Congratulations Connie!! YOU HAVE WON THE GIVEAWAY!!! Please check your email for more information.
WOW! These sound fascinating. I will have to give them a try with my grandkids. Thanks for the heads up 🙂
That is great Kaye – so glad I could introduce you! Thank you for entering the giveaway Kaye, good luck!
wikki sticks are great! my students love them!
I ABSOLUTELY ADORE THESE GIVEAWAYS!!!And this site of course!!!
This looks like it would be great in my classroom. I work with Special Needs and always looking for ways to help strengthen their little fingers and hands. We do a lot of finger activities to help build their coordination etc.
Wonderful Sheri, thank you very much for entering the giveaway! Good luck
These would be a great help for my granddaughter who is in preschool. She goes into kindergarten next year and has trouble gripping the smaller pencils.
These are super exciting. Thank you very much for the opportunity to win. The kiddos would love these. Sounds like it would bring out more creativity. Just what we are looking for!!!
This is a good idea to tell my preschool class’s parents about so they can “play” at home as well to develop these skills. Thank you!
Wonderful Mary, thank you! Good luck with the giveaway!
My preschoolers love Wikki Stix!!!
Awesome! Thank you for entering Joy, good luck!
This is exciting! I have a very young class of four-year olds this year and we need a lot of finger strengthening! They would love to play with wiki stix!!!!
Awesome Ashley, thank you for entering the giveaway! Good luck!
We love Wikki Stix! My kids got some in their stockings from Santa last year.
Go Santa!!! Thank you for entering the giveaway Kasey, good luck!
I love Wiki Sticks?
Me too 🙂 Thank you for entering Chantelle, good luck!
A perfect Christmas gift for my grandsons to enhance creativity and develop pencil grip.
Absolutely Rene! Thank you for entering the giveaway – good luck!
I am a mother of one and this idea of finger strength has just come to my attention through your link in my email. I appreciate this insight into helping my little one along. Thank you!
SO happy to be of help Maria! Thank you for entering the giveaway, good luck!
I would love to add these to our activity list!