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Fun with Fasteners
Therapy Kit

Build confidence with zippers, buttons, and snaps at home

This kit was designed by pediatric Occupational Therapists to help children ages 4–6 strengthen essential fine motor and daily living skills. Through playful activities, your child will build grip and finger strength, practice precise hand movements, improve independence with dressing tasks, and learn to use both hands together in a coordinated way.

What's Inside the Kit
(And How to Use It)

1. Graded Pinch Pin Exercisers 

Skills targeted: Grip strength, finger control, hand endurance

  • Let your child use thumb and one or more fingers to pinch and release each clip. 
  • Start with lower resistance and progress to higher strength over time. 
  • Try “pinch and hold” challenges for 5–10 seconds to build sustained strength. 
  • Use in obstacle courses (e.g., pinch a clip to pass to the next station) to make it fun. 

Therapist Tip: To work on dressing skills, attach clips to various parts of clothing and have child pull off. Increase engagement by attaching to preferred toys, or utilize as a “tweezer” to pick up small objects/items. 

2. Jumbo Nuts and Bolts Set

Skills targeted: Hand strength, fine motor dexterity, color/shape matching, problem-solving

  • Ask your child to match each nut with the bolt by shape and color before twisting them together. 
  • Use this toy to build rotational hand skills and increase hand endurance. 
  • Add a timing element: “How many can you match in 1 minute?”. 
  • Mix the nuts and bolts and encourage your child to sort them into matching sets. 

Therapist Tip: Have your child practice completion with both hands – twist one with right hand, then next one with left hand. Hide the pieces around to make a scavenger hunt! 

 

3. Melissa & Doug Deluxe Wooden Lacing Beads

Skills targeted: Fine motor precision, counting, bilateral coordination, early math

  • Let your child lace beads onto the string using one hand to hold the bead and the other to thread the lace. 
  • Use the beads for color and shape sorting, or group by numbers using the printed numerals and dot patterns. 
  • Encourage pattern-building: red-blue-red-blue, or circle-square-circle, etc. 
  • Practice counting aloud as beads are added. 

 

Therapist Tip: If this activity is difficult for your child, have them rest the bead and/or hands on a surface to provide increased support.  

4. Busy Board Dress Learning Toy

Skills targeted: Fine motor coordination, dressing independence, sequencing

  • Encourage your child to practice each fastener: buttoning, zipping, lacing, snapping, and buckling. 
  • Turn this into a routine game, like “Get the bear dressed” or “Unlock the puzzle.” 
  • Practice naming each step out loud to build sequencing and language. 

Therapist Tip: Hide small toys or figures under the fastener fabric to increase motivation and engagement. Practice with fasteners at table top with orientation similar to what it would be like if wearing the garment (zipping motion towards body versus away).  

5. Wooden Lacing Toys

Skills targeted: Bilateral coordination, visual-motor integration

  • Show your child how to thread the caterpillar string through the fruit holes. 
  • Start with simple, straight lacing and move toward more complex patterns. 
  • Encourage use of both hands—one to hold the fruit, one to thread. 
  • Use as a quiet, calming activity during downtime or travel. 

 

Therapist Tip: If this is too easy, have your child complete it while sitting on a dynamic surface such as an exercise ball, swing, or pillow. 

Safety Notes

This kit is recommended for ages 4–6 and should only be used under adult supervision. Some small beads may pose a choking hazard if they come loose. The pinch clips are spring-loaded and may pinch fingers if not used carefully. Please inspect items before use and supervise all activities to ensure safe handling.

Ready to Take the Next Step?​

If your child enjoys this kit but still struggles with fasteners, our pediatric therapy team can help.

Schedule a free developmental screening today
at one of our clinics in Oak Creek, Mount Pleasant, or Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Call 262-287-0090 Ext. 11
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