Tiny Crayon Treasure Rubbings

The child uses short, broken crayon pieces to make rubbings of hidden objects and to color small pictures — a tool so small it can only be held with the fingertips.

  1. Break old crayons into pieces about 2–3 cm long and peel off the paper. Let the child help snap them.
  2. Hide flat “treasures” under a sheet of thin paper: coins, leaves, a key, a paper clip, a piece of lace, or a comb. Tape the paper corners down.
  3. Show the pinch: thumb, index, and middle finger hold the crayon bit, with the ring and little fingers tucked into the palm.
  4. The child rubs the side of the crayon over the paper until a treasure appears, then guesses what it is.
  5. Switch to the crayon’s tip: the child circles each treasure, then colors it in with small back-and-forth strokes, trying to stay inside the circle.
  6. Move the treasures and make a new sheet in another color.

Variation: use the crayon bits to color a small picture the child drew, or to “feed” dots into a row of tiny circles — one firm dot in each.

Requirements

  • Space: A table corner
  • Surface: Hard, smooth table top (rubbings fail on cloth or a soft mat)
  • Materials: Broken crayon pieces, thin paper, tape, flat textured objects (coins, leaves, keys, paper clips)
  • Participants: 1 child; an adult to set up and show the pinch
  • Supervision: Light to moderate — check the grasp at the start, then let the child work

Rationale & Objective

By five, most children are moving from a whole-hand or stiff “static” hold toward a dynamic tripod (or an equally functional adapted or quadrupod) grasp, in which the pencil is moved by small finger movements rather than the wrist and arm. Schneck & Henderson’s (1990) study of 320 children charted this progression and found most children using a mature grasp by around six. Short tools are a staple occupational therapy strategy for encouraging it — a 2 cm crayon simply has no room for extra fingers or a fist — and Yakimishyn & Magill-Evans (2002) found that toddlers of about 23 months used a more mature grasp with a short piece of crayon than with a pencil. Rubbing with the crayon’s side also teaches graded pressure, and coloring small areas builds the tiny finger movements writing needs. The UK EYFS goal for the end of the reception year is to “hold a pencil effectively… using the tripod grip in almost all cases.” Note that Schwellnus et al. (2012) found several different mature grasps produce equally legible, fast handwriting, so the aim is a comfortable, controlled hold — not one perfect grip.

Progress Indicators

  • Early: holds the crayon piece with four or five fingertips or presses it flat under the palm; moves the whole arm; rubbings are faint or tear the paper
  • Developing: pinches with thumb and two fingers when reminded but the wrist and forearm do the moving; pressure is uneven; coloring spills well outside the outline
  • Proficient: uses a three- or four-finger pinch without reminders, forearm resting on the table; even pressure brings out clear rubbings; colors small shapes mostly inside the lines
  • Advanced: carries the same grasp over to a full-length pencil; fingers do the moving for small strokes; shades light and dark on purpose and colors neatly up to the edge

Safety Notes

  • Crayon pieces and coins are choking hazards — not for children who still mouth objects, and keep them away from younger siblings
  • Use non-toxic crayons, and wash hands after handling coins
  • Do not physically force fingers into position or nag about grip throughout; one demonstration and a small tool do more than repeated correction
  • Hands tire quickly — stop if the child shakes out their hand or complains of aching, and keep sessions to about 10 minutes
  • An unusual but comfortable and controlled grasp does not need fixing; ask an occupational therapist if the child still uses a fist grasp past five, complains of pain, or avoids drawing altogether

Hints

  • Playfulness: call it a treasure hunt or detective work — you hide the objects while the child covers their eyes, and they must reveal and name each one
  • Sustain interest: go on a texture hunt around the home or outdoors (tree bark, a manhole pattern, a basket, shoe soles) and build a rubbing collection book
  • Common mistake: handing a child with an immature grasp thick “jumbo” crayons or long pencils. Short and small tools (crayon bits, golf pencils, chalk stubs) do more to bring the fingertips into play
  • Limited space: on the go, a single crayon bit and a paper napkin over a coin, a menu’s embossed logo, or a car key works at a café table
  • Cross-domain: sort rubbings into rough and smooth (science and sensory vocabulary); do coin rubbings and compare sizes and numbers (numeracy); make leaf rubbings and name the trees (nature)
  • Progression: side-of-crayon rubbing → tip coloring of large shapes → coloring small shapes inside the lines → short pencil for the same tasks → full-length pencil

Sources

  • Schneck, C.M. & Henderson, A. (1990), “Descriptive analysis of the developmental progression of grip position for pencil and crayon control in nondysfunctional children,” American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 44(10)
  • Yakimishyn, J.E. & Magill-Evans, J. (2002), “Comparisons among tools, surface orientation, and pencil grasp for children 23 months of age,” American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 56(5)
  • Schwellnus, H. et al. (2012), “Effect of pencil grasp on the speed and legibility of handwriting in children,” American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 66(6)
  • UK EYFS Early Learning Goal — Fine Motor Skills (“using the tripod grip in almost all cases”)
  • CDC/AAP Developmental Milestones (2022) — “holds crayon or pencil between fingers and thumb (not a fist)” (age 4)
  • AOTA Occupational Therapy Practice Framework (4th ed., 2020)