Toys for Children with and without Disabilities: Pick Up Sticks

#24 in 50 Toys in 50 Days

Part of Let Kids Play annual Holiday Toy Guide

Happy Thanksgiving!!

How about an old fashion game of Pick Up Sticks to play while you are waiting for dinner to be done?  How about making them bigger so that hands that need some work can get in on the fun as well?  Here are some other suggestions to make the game easier for our children that need to work on fine motor skills or motor planning: You can  use less sticks to help a child figure out the best way to pick them up.  You can drop them from up high so that get very spread out making it so there is only the challenge of picking up the stick, not having to worry about whether you move another stick.

Here are two different sets of Pick Up Sticks that are larger than the norm.

First there are Giant Pick Up Sticks from Fat Brain Toys.  There are 31 sticks in this wooden set.  Each stick is 3' long (36").

Second are the Giant Pick Up Sticks from Pressman Toys.  It contains 30 colorful, 9-3/4" long wooden pick sticks, in a bright nostalgic container.

Last are Pick Up Sticks from Melissa and Doug.  Parents rave about this product.  Here is Fat Brain Toys' description of this toy. "Melissa & Doug's Past-Tyme "Classics Pick-Up Sticks" is part of a very special collection of heirloom-quality games, hand-crafted, hand-sanded, and hand-stained for generations of family play time! This pick-up sticks game is made of solid wood, painted by hand in handsome colors, and features clever storage that holds all of the pieces securely. This item is designed to add beauty to any table top! Includes 41 pieces."

Have fun this holiday season, playing family games!