Learning to use scissors is a complicated activity that requires not only the ability to hold the scissors and open and close them, but a good sitting position and the ability to move the paper while holding it under tension.

What can you do to help

Starting Point

You can begin to help your child learn the idea of squeezing and releasing their grasp by doing activities that don’t involve scissors, such as using a spray bottle to water the plants or clothes pegs to peg things on a line.

When they are ready to move on to scissors

You can help your child by guiding them to hold the scissors with their thumb in the top loop and their first finger in the bottom loop supported by their other fingers, if they find this difficult you can get scissors with a larger bottom loop that they put their whole hand into.

Encourage them to make small snips in paper or thin card that might be more stable, cutting up straws to or snipping random shapes from paper to make collage pictures.
Help them to hold the paper by using a bulldog clip

Scissors can even be used to snip every day foods:

Next Steps

Cutting straight lines:

Encourage your child to hold the paper off the table with their other hand, with their thumb on top of the paper and fingers underneath.
Start with straight lines, start with the line furthest away so that they don’t have to keep picking up the cut piece of paper.
Make the cutting lines thick to allow for errors, draw over a thin line with a marker pen.
Find lots of activities that involve cutting straight lines, such as making paper chains, snowflakes and paper lanterns
Novelty scissors with crinkles can be also be fun. See image.

Getting There

When they have mastered straight lines move on to curves and simple shapes.
Help them to learn to cut round corners,by using their assisting hand to re-position the paper.
Find a variety of materials for them to cut including play dough, material, foil paper etc to encourage cutting
Make the activity fun and join in with them
Start to include cutting into making models,
Right handed children should cut in an anti-clockwise direction (to the right)
If they are left handed try left handed scissors which will make cutting easier and teach them to cut out shapes In a clockwise (to the left) direction.

Feeling Confident

Your child can now use scissors for cutting out many different materials such as fabric and as part of different activities, such as preparing food. Make sure they have scissors that are right for the job and for their age and stage of development.

. ot web- scissors

How we can help

If your child is struggling to master scissor control as part of a wider difficulty using their hands, making it difficult for them to manage everyday, consider a referral to Occupational Therapy for an assessment and advice and guidance on things that may help them at home and in school. Specialist scissors made be required for example in the video below:

Need More Information?

Click here to access more information for children who are struggling to master scissor control consider using one of the many different adapted scissors on the market.
Click here to find information about lots of products including left handed scissors for all ages.
There are lots of activities that can help with learning to use scissors on the internet.

Scissor skills