Fine motor work that SPARKLES!

My partner teacher bought a big bag of jewels to use in our classroom for various projects. The jewels are right around an inch (average--as they are all different shapes). I put out one fine motor work station that involves simply dropping the jewels into a bottle.

To take into consideration:
-find a bottle that will make this challenging yet appropriate for the specific child. My students are 3 and 4, so they are ready for something a little more difficult. I found a bottle with a neck that just barely allows all of the jewels to fit inside. This requires a great deal of precision to fit the jewels inside, and some of the jewels (heart, etc.) have to be rotated the right way to fit. Younger children could fit the jewels into a larger-necked bottle.

-make sure all the jewels you put out will fit inside, unless you want the child to sort by "jewels that fit" and "jewels that don't fit"

-you're promotiong fine motor development (wrist control, hand-eye coordination, pincer grasp, arm strength), spatial awareness and exploration of different shapes.

This is a popular work item with our kiddos--they love working with the sparkly jewels!

I believe the jewels were bought at Hobby Lobby!