A jewelry tree stand makes for a great DIY fine motor toy for babies and toddlers! It hones fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination, as well as help with development of problem solving and logical thinking skills.
The best part? As long as you don't throw out the jewelry tree stand, it can be used and played with time and again, for zero cost!
Jewelry Tree Stand Fine Motor Activity for Babies & Toddlers!
The Setup
Apart from the jewelry tree stand, these are common household items you can provide your child with for this activity. Let your baby or toddler freely loop and stack any of these items over the branches of the jewelry tree!
- Toilet paper rolls (cut into small pieces for easy looping)
- Hair ties
- Curtain rings (Idea from Imagination Tree
Further Learning Opportunities
- Time challenge (Fit all the items on the jewelry tree stand before the timer sounds!)
- Counting
- Color sorting (Simply use colored tape over the branches of the jewelry tree stand and paint the paper rolls with matching colors)
- Teach about seasonal change via how trees' appearances transform in each season (e.g. Winter: Bald tree, Spring: Tree with green leaves and colorful flowers, Summer: Tree with green leaves, Fall: Tree with brown leaves which shed)
Benefits of this Fine Motor Activity
- Build focus and concentration
- Practice for pincer grip
- Improve fine motor abilities critical for later skills like writing and drawing
- Train bilateral hand movement
- Cause and effect learning
- Early introduction to math - Understanding spatial relationships between objects and how things fit together in a common space
- Hones problem-solving and logical thinking
Gwen's Play Experience
Looping and stacking items on the many branches of the jewelry tree stand proved to be a great fine motor challenge for Gwen (19 months).
Lots of hand maneuvers were required to aim, position and angle the items so that they would fit on the branches of the tree stand. The activity seemed really straightforward and easy but from a toddler standpoint, it was hard work!
I liked that this activity encouraged bilateral hand use and coordination, which is a sign that both sides of the brain is communicating and sharing information effectively.
To follow Gwen's play adventures, check out @miraculove_sg (Instagram), save our pins or join A Toddler Activity A Day Facebook Group.
You might also like:

Hi! I am Yunnie. I am the newly minted mama to a little baby girl and a mum friend to everyone on this special (and many times scary) journey of motherhood. Also a graduated bride with a penchant for weddings.