Motor skills tend to grow by leaps and bounds in early and middle childhood. Gross motor skills are large movements that include crawling, sitting, walking, running and throwing. Fine motor skills are used for picking up and letting go of objects like pencils, crayons or scissors and manipulating objects in the hands. A child's ability to perfect these physical attributes depends on things like hand-eye coordination, flexibility and muscle strength, according to the Royal Children's Hospital.
Toddlers Fine Motor Skills
A child can make major strides in both fine and gross motor skills during the second year of life as she makes the transition from baby to toddler. While an infant's idea of play is shaking, banging, or tossing toys, a toddler is able to talk on a play phone or even pretend that a banana is a phone. It's during this period of development that tentative first steps become confident walking.
Hand-eye coordination will also improve during the second year of life. Toddlers gain better control over fingers and hands. A 2-year-old may be able to use crayons to draw lines and circles, according to How Kids Develop.com. By age 3 she may be able to safely use scissors.
Toddlers Gross Motor Skills
Gross motor skills from age 2 to 3 generally expand to include running with minimal tripping, jumping on both feet and walking up and downstairs without assistance.
Preschoolers Fine Motor Skills
A preschooler between the ages of 3 to 6 have usually graduated from exclusively drawing lines and circles now that she can efficiently grasp crayons and fat pencils to draw and pretend she is writing, according to How Kids Develop,com.
Fine motor skills in a preschooler have been refined to the point that she is probably able to button and zip clothes and tie her shoes. As she masters the art of holding and controlling various objects, she may learn to pour liquid from a pitcher into a cup.
Preschoolers Gross Motor Skills
More sophisticated gross motor skills will permit your preschooler to learn to throw and catch a large ball. He may be proficient at climbing, hopping and skipping.
During these years, a child may learn to pedal a tricycle and desire to help with household chores.
School Age Gross Motor Skills
By age six, children begin to have fairly strong and smooth motor skills in place, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). However, balance, coordination and endurance can vary among the 6 to 12 age group.
By age 7, a typical child should be proficient at complex motor activity such as jumping rope, swimming and propelling herself on a swing, skipping, or swimming strokes, according to the NIH. She also will likely be able to catch and throw with ease.
School Age Fine Motor Skills
As fine motor skills become more sophisticated in school-age children, they should be encouraged to pitch in with household tasks, like setting the table and doing dishes, according to the NIH.
The NIH points out, however, that fine motor skills can vary considerable in this age group. While one child may have trouble writing neatly or making her own bed, another may also perform these tasks with ease.
