Telehealth Occupational Therapy: Gross Motor Skills using Tin Cans!

Beans, tomatoes, soup...

​Most families have tin cans in their home. 

I have collated some fun ways to work on gross motor skills using tin cans and some markers.  These activities encourage the development of core strength, arm and shoulder strength, bilateral coordination, crossing the midline, balance and more!

These activities can be easily incorporated in OT sessions as well as carried out at home.  You don't need a lot of space and you don't need special equipment.  If you don't have tin cans then use what you DO have (eg. plastic cups, bowls, jars or sticks and spoons). 

Watch the You-tube video for the gross motor activities in action.  You can use this link if you can't see the video below ---> https://youtu.be/epFzBX0pdBY

Jumping
Lay out markers to encourage jumping forward/backward, side to side and straight up/down.  You could also try turning a half or full circle (180 or 360 degrees).  Try adding a metronome to assist with focus and attention.  (Read more ways you can use a metronome HERE). 

Marker movement
Position in either the quadrupod position (like a dog on all fours), a bear (with hands on the ground and bottom in the air) or a plank position (resting on hands or forearms).  Place the markers in front of the child and ask them to use their right hand to move markers to the left side of their body and their left hand to move markers to the right side of their body. 

Tin can touch 
Try this in a variety of positions. Encourage your child to stay in one position whilst reaching across their body to tap the tin cans (with their hand or foot).  This involves "crossing the midline".  Once your child tries these touches with one foot then try the other foot too.   If they have difficulty balancing, your child could touch one tin can and then rest their foot on the ground.  You could increase the difficulty by increasing the number of tin cans they touch before resting their foot on the ground. You can also increase the difficulty by having your child match markers with the corresponding coloured tin can.
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* Balance on one foot.
* Quadrupod position (ie. like a dog on all fours)
* Plank Position.  
* Crab/Table position.  

Visual Sequencing
Encourage visual sequencing by adding coloured paper to the tins and drawing a simple grid of coloured dots to follow.  Ask your child to tap the tins in the order of the coloured dots that they see.  You could work on memory by covering the visual prompt.  You could change the order of the dots or change the position of the tins to vary the activity. 

Do you have an older child?  You could incorporate colour matching or academic skills such as learning the letters of the alphabet or sight words with any of the activities mentioned here.

Squat to stand/stand to squat
Place the tin cans on a table and ask your child to stand near the table. Place the markers on the floor.  Ask your child to squat to pick up a marker and stand to place the marker in the matching coloured tin can.  Encourage your child not to hold onto the table as they move up and down. Make sure that they are bending at the knees and not the waist. 

If you have a cushion or a wobble air cushion, you could ask your child to stand on the cushion to  do this activity whilst moving from squat to stand (and versa).  You could swap out the markers for balls or pegs. 

You could also incorporate tall kneeling.  Have a look at the photo that I shared on Instagram of this activity. 

Tin Can Target

• Set up your tin cans like bowling pins. Roll a ball to knock them over.
• Stack your tin cans or line them up on a table.  Throw a ball to knock them over.​

Tin Can Roll

• Lie your tin cans on their side and line them up.  Ask your child to use their foot to roll the tin can forward and backward. 
• Lie your tin cans on their side and line them up.  Ask your child to use their hand to roll the tin can away from them. 

For more gross motor activity ideas:

• 7 Gross Motor Skills for Preschoolers.
• Gross Motor Skills for Page Stabilization

These activities all provide sensory feedback for children to the skin receptors, muscles and joints.  Deep pressure input can have a calming affect for some children and can help a child to develop body awareness.  Read more about sensory based activities HERE.

How do you incorporate tin cans to develop gross motor skills?  I would love to hear from you if try out some of these activity suggestions. 
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Cindy is a registered occupational therapist practising in Sydney, Australia.  She has two growing children who are a constant source of inspiration and learning.  Cindy loves workingcreatively to help children to reach their potential, finding opportunities in everyday living and making learning fun. She is also addicted to making printables (even when they take a long time to complete).  Cindy is the author of the Occupational Therapy blog Your Kids OT.  Read more articles from Your Kids OT at https://www.yourkidsot.com/blog

Cindy is a member of the Functional Skills for Kids Therapy Team.  They have together published THE HANDWRITING BOOK, THE SCISSORS SKILLS BOOK and THE TOILETING BOOK.

​The information on this site is general in nature. The activities are safe for most children, however, you should consult an Occupational Therapist or health professional to address specific movement, sensory or other medical conditions. Affiliate links are used throughout this website to promote products I love and recommend. I receive a commission if any purchases are made through these links. Please see my disclosure policy for more details. ​​​

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