PL 7.05Scissors 3: Cutting Curves and Shapes

1. 1

   Invite the child and carry the tray to a table.

2. 2

   Take a wavy-line card. Start cutting on the line with short cuts.

3. 3

   As the line curves, turn the paper with your holding hand while the scissors keep pointing straight ahead. Turning the paper, not the scissors, is the difficulty isolated here.

4. 4

   Cut to the end and show the wavy edge.

5. 5

   On another day, show a circle: cut in from the edge to the circle line, then cut around it, turning the paper a little after each cut.

6. 6

   Lift the circle out of the paper.

7. 7

   Put the scraps in the bowl and invite the child to cut.

What catches the child’s eye

• The paper turning while the scissors point straight ahead
• A whole circle lifting free from the paper

Extensions, easiest to hardest

1. Cut an oval, then a square and a triangle, stopping at the corners
2. Cut out a shape the child has drawn
3. Cut out a shape traced from a metal inset