Scissors skills printable for kids

Searching for a scissors skills printable with more basic shapes? I made these worksheets because when my older kids were learning to use scissors, the ones I found were either just straight lines or way too hard for beginners. I wanted big basic shapes for them to practice, and used to just draw them with markers on to paper. These friendly food shapes are the much cuter versions of those sheets 🙂

Worksheet that says fun food scissors skills, with a cartoon donut surrounded by a dotted line and a pair of scissors

What are pre-scissor skills / pre-cutting skills?

Prior to using scissors, kids need to develop the muscles in their hands so they’re able to use a grasp-release motion. A great exercise for little hands is using a spray bottle filled with water. You can find small spray bottles in the travel size section of your grocery store. Kids LOVE spraying. They can spray the plants outside, spray the tub walls during their bath, spray and wipe a window, you name it.

Working with Play Doh is also a great hand strengthener. Kneading, squeezing, pinching – all of these motions will work those muscles. Opening and closing clothespins is another good activity. Kids can open clothespins and pin them around a paper plate or use them to pick up little objects.

What’s the best paper for practicing scissor skills?

When working on cutting, construction paper can be a little better for kids to work with. It’s thicker and has some texture to it, so it’s easier to handle. (Be sure to save all the little paper scraps from scissor practice – they can be used for other projects like collages.)

Draw some straight lines on the paper with a pen or marker. Once your child gets the hang of it, they can move on to some simple shapes. This requires them to be able to turn the paper while they cut, so it can take some time.

Our fun food scissor skills worksheets are a set of five cute shapes – donut circle, waffle square, avocado triangle. oval burrito, and bottle of milk square.