Acorn Fine Motor and Counting

We love Fall activities! When we can use acorns, apples and leaves that we have collected or picked outside it makes the activity even more fun. This acorn fine motor activity is a great activity for 1 and 2 year olds (with adult supervision), and can be done with 3 and 4 year olds as counting practice. For this week of the Virtual Book Club for Kids, we read Scaredy Squirrel, one of our library favorites (check it out on YouTube if you can’t get it).

*This post contains affiliate links.

Acorn Fine Motor & Counting Activity

We have been looking for acorns on our walks around our neighborhood but it seems that the squirrels have gotten to them first. So luckily we happened to stumble upon a jackpot of acorns at the park this week! The kids quickly filled my pockets.

What you Need:

acorns
fine motor tools
muffin tin
pen and paper

What to Do:

For the assembly, place your gathered acorns into a dish or bowl (I used a seasonal pie plate). Add some fine motor tools and a muffin tin to the space. We love the fine motor scoopers here but you can use kitchen tools like tongs and large spoons as well, all are great for fine motor practice!

This project is quite simple, and mostly mess-free using household items. It also provokes some thought and opportunity to ask questions about acorns, where they come from, who eats them, etc. This makes for a perfect extension activity to Scaredy Squirrel.

To take this from a fine motor activity to a counting activity for older kids, simple add some slips of paper with a number written on them to the individual muffin spots.