Opening the Pinkies Up Picnic Set from the Enthusiast Play Kit helps build hand-eye coordination, bilateral coordination, and a lot of problem solving skills! As visionary educator Maria Montessori, MD, once said, “What the hand does, the mind remembers.” Zeke is using his eyes to guide his hands in rotating the cups and tea pot. Bilateral coordination is the ability to use both sides of your body in a coordinated fashion, which is more challenging than coordinating one at a time. There are three types of bilateral movements: 1. Symmetrical movements- where both hands are performing the same movement at the same time. Zeke is using this type of coordination when holding the tea pot on either side with each hand to bring it up to his mouth. 2. Reciprocal movements- where the hand movements are being carried out in a rhythmic and alternating way. 3. Leading hand and supporting hand- where each hand has a specific role and is working together to complete the same task. Zeke is using this type of coordination when using his left hand to hold the cup from below and his right hand to explore the inside of the cup! Children learn through trial and error, which helps them learn to trust their own process. In this video you can see Zeke learning from each of his attempts, getting one step closer each time to reaching his goal of holding the tea pot. This is why developmental experts encourage resisting the urge to swoop in and show your child the ‘right’ way to do something. Video by: @Halee and Zeke #LearnThroughPlay #ChildDevelopment #ToddlerTok #BabyTok #Parenting #ParentingTips