Choose the Crayons over the Dancing Fruit
education exchange
Have you ever been to a restaurant and watched little children engaged in a video of dancing fruit on YouTube, while other children grab the free crayons and scrawl over the paper place mats or do the dot-to-dot? Turns out, one of these activities is preparing these little ones for future cognitive success.
The study
Suggate et al (2025) brought together 118 studies to look at the impact of fine motor skills on cognitive development. Fine motor skills are the ability to position and move hand(s) and fingers at speed, and with accuracy. Within this skillset lie our graphomotor skills, the ability to operate a pen and pencil.
The research found that graphomotor skills were a strong predictor of future success in reading, writing and mathematics. Think of paintbrush control, pen work, and colouring with crayons. All of these are precursors to handwriting, note-taking, exercise completion, and interaction with learning material. They even appear to be linked to language development. It is not merely just engaging with these activities that are relevant, but it appears that the actual level of fine motor skill achieved by the child appears to be linked to cognitive outcomes.
As both educators and parents, we should be purposeful in supporting these graphomotor functions. This paper supports the teaching of letter formation alongside phonics, but also provides a rallying cry for the importance of arts and crafts activities. So next time you are in a restaurant, choose the crayons over the dancing fruit.
References
- Suggate, S.P., Karle, V., Kipfelsberger, T., and Stoeger, H., (2025) 'A meta-analysis of correlations between fine motor skills and reading, writing, mathematics, and cognitive skills', Educational Research Review, 49, article no: 100748. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2024.100748 (Accessed: 10 May 2026).
