Hand Eye Coordination Games for Kids

Hand Eye Coordination Games for Kids

Our kids love to play and with good reason: playing is how they learn! One of the important skills they learn when playing is hand eye coordination. It’s the ability of processing information from what they see and using it to move their hands in the right place. It sounds simple, but this developmental skill can be a hard one to learn for some kids. One of the best ways to help your child improve their hand eye coordination is by playing games. As New Zealand’s toy experts, we feel we can help you with some ideas here!

Games to Improve a Child’s Hand Eye Coordination (h2)

A child’s hand eye coordination starts developing right from birth. It starts by reaching out to grab objects and then moves to placing them in specific areas. There are so many fun ways to develop this important skill, but here are a few of our favourite games.

• Relay Lines – a game for the whole family! Stand in a line and pass a ball to the person behind you in different ways. Pass it over your head, under your legs or twist around to pass it on.
• Juggling – even most adults find this challenging, but it is something which fascinates older kids. Start by watching a quick juggling demonstration video to see what to do. Our juggling balls are perfect for beginners.
• Passing and Tossing – suitable for young children who are just learning to throw and catch. Encourage your child to use both hands like a cup to catch and throw gently upwards to the other person. Use a soft object to toss such as a bean bag or even a balloon. For older kids, using a set with a ball and catch mitt like our Grip Ball makes this a fun, yet challenging activity.
• Skipping – remember the skipping rhymes we used to sing? It’s time to introduce them to your kids and teach them the joys of skipping.
• Balloon Batting – a tennis ball is too small and moves too fast for a child in the early stages of their hand eye coordination development. Swap the tennis ball for a balloon and let the fun begin. As they build on this skill, move up to using a swingball or pole tennis set. It will save you (and them) having to chase balls everywhere!

Play is so important, yet something we as adults don’t pay enough attention to. With the benefits of play well known, it’s important we actively encourage our kids to experiment and try new skills each day. If there is a skill you’d like your child to improve upon, chances are we know a game which will help! Send us a message, check out our online toy store or pop into the Northcote toy shop today!