What Is Visual Motor Integration? 

Visual motor integration is the ability to incorporate visual information that we perceive with our motor skills in order to correctly execute movement of our arms, legs, and body. Visual motor skills are integral to efficient and coordinated movement which allows your child to successfully engage in daily occupations. 

Signs of Visual Motor Dysfunction 

Visual motor difficulties may present in a variety of ways. Your child may have difficulties with staying within the lines when they color, catching or kicking a ball, fastening buttons, tying their shoelaces, as well as many other gross and fine motor activities. These tasks develop throughout toddlerhood and may take time for them to master but if you notice that your child struggles with any of these tasks, pediatric physical and occupational therapists are able to provide intervention. 

Visual Motor Activities 

Common activities that require the use of visual motor skills include coloring within the lines, copying words/shapes, writing within the lines on a piece of paper, and participating in gross motor activities that require well-time movements such as catching or hitting a ball. These skills work hand in hand with many other skills including oculomotor control, and visual perception to make up visual processing which is the ability to make sense of what we see. Here are some of my favorite visual motor integration activities!

1. Gross Motor Activities 

• Start with a large ball and pass it slowly so you child has better success and make the task harder by using smaller balls or passing it faster 
• Encourage your child to engage in jumping activities such as jumping jacks or jump rope 
• Sit in a darkened room with your child and make shapes using a flashlight, encourage your child to copy the shapes 
• If you have a swing in your backyard, allow them to swing while you hold a hula-hoop or laundry basket and encourage your child to toss beanbags or stuffed animals into it 

Related Reading: Gross Motor Skills Activities for the Summer

2. Paper Activities 

• Make raised letters using glitter glue and let your child trace them with their finger once it is dry 
• Use a highlighter on the top and bottom of handwriting practice paper to orient your child 
• Use paper maze activities such as dot paths and rainbow ladders 
• Help your child make origami or paper airplanes 

3. Fine Motor Activities 

• String large blocks with larger holes and make it harder my using smaller beads 
• To practice using scissors, start with simple shapes with large, bold lines and move to more complex shapes 
• Make simple shapes on a piece of paper and encourage your child to use pipe cleaners to match the shape

Learn More: Fine Motor Skills Defined

About the Author 

Elena Falcy is a pediatric occupational therapist candidate at NAPA Center. She loves cold days when she can wrap up in a blanket and engage in one of her favorite hobbies, cross-stitching. One of her goals in life is to visit every national park in the United States.