Two weeks ago, my nephew only had his eyes on his lacing toys. And as I’ve explained in a previous post, lacing activity has a lot of benefits to toddlers who are just developing their fine motor muscles.
That is why I was glad that he took a liking to the toy. 🙂
But this week, the lacing toy finally lost its wonder. They are no longer Seb’s favorite toy. (My sister and I already expected this.)
Seb has now moved on to KITCHEN TONGS!
The other day, when we went to Japan Homes, my sister bought kitchen tongs for Seb (as per big sister’s recommendation. Ehem!) 😛
The kitchen tongs that my sister bought has rubber at the end so it’s fairly safe for Seb to play with it.
It was love at first sight for Seb when he first caught a glimpse of the tongs!
Since that day, he always has his kitchen tongs on hand. It has become his constant companion in all of his plays.
He would use the tongs to get his toy cars and transfer his miniature animals. He uses it to point to objects when inside the house. And he uses it to explore when he’s outside.
My sister wasn’t able to escape the tongs, too. As her nose also got pinched! 😀
And just this morning, Seb unknowingly did a Montessori activity! He transferred stones using the tongs.
At the moment, we don’t have a structured activity yet using the kitchen tongs (although Seb has already started this morning with his first transferring activity.) We just want him to be familiar with it and just enjoy.
But soon, we will already introduce some Montessori activities to him using the tongs.
As a teacher, I know that kitchen tongs are beneficial for the development of toddlers’ fine motor skills. And the more purposeful the activity is, the more skills are targeted.
I highly recommend that children -as early as toddler-age, be introduced to this very versatile household item. Just make sure that the material is kid-safe!
I have a number of activities for Seb using kitchen tongs. And I can’t wait for him to work on them. And of course, I’m also excited to share it with you all.
But for now, we’ll just let Seb use the tongs whichever way he likes.
Teacher’s Advice:
Introduce kitchen tongs (made of kid-safe materials) to your toddlers.
It’s good for fine motor skills development.
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42 Responses
Everything has a purpose if you can have an imagination. I absolutely love using the tongs to develop skills.
True. All we need is a little imagination. 😁
I love this idea! I have a baby nephew that is 1 and would probably have fun with tongs. I never would have thought of using tongs!
I never thought of tongs being used as a toy. I’m glad I learned it through a Montessori seminar that I attended in school. 😁
I think this a great way to reimagine and repurpose items as toys for children especially if anyone is on a tight budget.
I agree! Very practical items that can double as toys. 😁
What a fun way to work on those fine motor skills. My toddler is always taking the utencils out of drawers, so I’m going to try this!
I do hope you get to try the kitchen tongs. They’re proven effective in keeping toddlers busy.
That is too cute! It’s funny what kids gravitate to! My daughter has told me that her 3 girls are always taking dish towels and oven mitts out of the kitchen drawers. They use them as blankets and sleeping bags for their dolls! 🙂
That is so funny and imaginative, too! Sleeping bags for dolls. It must be very lively in your daughter’s home. 😁
This is a great idea. He is fully engaged in using it and developing his fine motor skills at the same time. Well done aunty and mommy.
Thank you! Kitchen tongs really help in keeping him busy. 😁
Love his grin in the last picture. I think household tools are the best toys sometimes but I have never thought of the motorskills they could teach!
He does have a cute grin. Very infectious. 😁
What an awesome idea! My boys love to help in the kitchen. I never thought about the motor skills it’s teaching in addition to kitchen skills!
I love that you let your little boy help in the kitchen. We want to try that soon woth my nephew. 😁
I have to agree, ours is now three and he loves the tongs, whenever he can get hold of it he is happy. This also goes for the different spoons and a small bowl or two. He loves moving stuff around. Especially the milk flavoring ….
🤣 My nephew does the same thing. The kitchen has become an extension of his playroom.
Wow, I never thought of giving my daughter kitchen tongs to play with – what a great idea for helping to develop motor skills… who needs expensive toys!
You’re so correct. No need for expensive toys. We can use the money for family trips instead. 😁
First off- he’s so adorable! I love how something so simple- that we all probably have in our houses already- can have such great benefits to kids! It seems to be a great way to keep them preoccupied while learning!
Thank you! We think he’s adorable, too. 😁 And we do love kotchen tongs so much. It keeps our toddler busy and productive.
I didn’t think kitchen tongs could beneficial for developing motor skills for a toddler. My friend who is a pre-school teacher could really benefit from this post, I’ll make sure to share it with her!
Thank you so much! I appreciate you sharing this post. 😊
Kids can explore the world around them without expensive toys! It’s much more fun too
I totally agree!
Tongs are great for fine motor skills. We use them in our preschool class all the time. I’ll have to try this with my daughter since she just found a pair of tongs in the kitchen today. Hi
I also got this idea from a Montessori seminar that I attended. It was very helpful and practical. 😁 Ever since, kitchen tongs became a staple item in my classroom and at home, too!
It’s so funny, because we spend all these money on fancy toys and the kids pretty much would rather play with any old pots and pans anyway! Haha
So true! Had we known, we wouldn’t spend so much on toys. 🤣
I have a preschooler too and I think she likes playing with household items more than her toys! 🙂
We can totally relate! There’s just something about household items that make them so irresistable to children.
What a great idea! We don’t have tongs that look like that – I will have to get some.
It’s a great to have available. Very entertaining!
That photo of him using the tongs on the shrubs is just about the cutest thing. 🙂
This post was definitely helpful in thinking of things I can let my daughter play with when she’s old enough. She’s only 9 months at the moment, but tongs will definitely be on my mind a little later. 🙂
I am so excited for you! Every day with a baby is so precious. They develop so fast! 😊
How simple and creative to just take a pan and let your child collect rocks! Not only does it keep them busy for a good amount of time, it develops their motor skills– and all of it is free. I’ve had so many wins with just everyday things around the house when it comes to toys for my children. I think these tips are awesome!
Thank you, Kisha! We do love rocks here in our household. They’re great for counting, playing and transferring. Very versatile! 😁
Such a great idea, never actually thought of it! I love activities that actually help with toddlers ‘ development, my son was obsessed with transferring water from one bowl to the other by a sponge! Will give this a try once my daughter is old enough.
My nephew also loves doing that. We made it part of his bath time. 🤣 We don’t want to keep changing his clothes so we thought of just making it a prelude to bathing.
I learned this from you! I gave my toddler tongs to play with today. She said “they’re just like scissors!”
Exactly! 😁 It’s actually a great pre-cutting activity. I’m glad your toddler enjoyed it.