We’ve got a garden full of pumpkins. Not just any pumpkins, but giant ones that my kids grow for the county fair each year. And with those giant pumpkins, we have a few extras lying around to do fun things with.
Fun things like shooting with a bow and arrow (for the big kids) or practicing some fine motor skills with a hammer and some big nails (the littlest)
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I love giving my young kids real tools to work with. It teaches them some great life skills and makes them feel pretty special and proud!
How to Set Up a Pumpkin Hammering Fine Motor Activity
All you need for this super fun, skill building activity is:
a pumpkin
a small hammer
some large nails
If you are worried, or are working with a very small toddler, you can also use wooden or plastic golf tees instead of the nails.
But the nails are much more fun! And again- teaching them to use real tools is always a plus!
Depending on the age of your child, you can simply hand them the tools and let them go to town hammering the nails into the pumpkin.
If your child is a little younger, you may have to start the nails for them. And then let them hammer them in the rest of the way.
What skills are your kids working on with this pumpkin activity?
Working small hand muscles
Hand-eye coordination
Fine motor control
Correct way to hold a hammer to protect the fingers
You May Also Like: 9 Pumpkin Sensory Activities (with Real Pumpkins)
You can also extend the activity in a number of ways. Such as:
Counting the nails as your child hammers them in, or takes them out. This is great for one to one correspondence.
You can draw lines on the pumpkin and allow your child to hammer the nails onto the line for extra fine motor skill practice.
Ask your child to create a face or picture out of the nails as he hammers them in.
Looking for more fine motor fun? Check out these fun activities:
Hammering and Smashing Fruit Loops for Fine Motor Fun
8 Water Bead Sensory Activities for Fine Motor Skill Building
How to Make Pumpkin Pie Slime for Fall Sensory Fun
