A Quick, Low-Mess OT Activity Kids Love
Looking for an easy, low-mess activity that keeps kids engaged and builds important developmental skills? Try our Spoon & Pom-Pom Transfer Race—a quick, fun game that strengthens motor skills, focus, coordination, and regulation using items you already have at home.
Kids can scoop, sort, balance, and race through playful twists like obstacle courses, pattern-making, “feeding” stuffed animals, or creating silly magic potions. Parents love it because it feels like play—kids don’t even realize how much they're practicing fine motor precision, grasp development, hand-eye coordination, bilateral integration, and more. Here’s how to set it up!
Spoon & Pom-Pom Transfer Race
What You Need:
A spoon
A handful of pom-poms, cotton balls, or small toys
Two bowls or containers
How to Play:
Step 1: Scoop & Transfer
Place all the pom-poms in one bowl. Have your child use the spoon to scoop them up one at a time and transfer them to the empty bowl.
Step 2: Add a Fun Twist
Try:
Using the non-dominant hand
Walking across the room while balancing the pom-pom or through a simple obstacle course
Doing it while sitting on a pillow or in a kneel position
Playing a timer game (“How many can you transfer in 30 seconds?”)
Fun Ways To Play!
1. Magic Potion Mixer
Call the pom-poms “magic ingredients.” Have your child scoop specific colors into a “potion bowl” to create silly spells like:
Blue + green = invisibility potion
Red + yellow = super speed
Purple + white = giggle spell
2. Feed the Animals
Place stuffed animals around the room and assign each one a color. Your child has to scoop and “feed” the matching pom-poms to the right animal.
Dog eats brown or white
Dinosaur eats green
Unicorn eats rainbow
3. Delivery Driver Game
Set up “houses” (bowls or taped squares) around the room. Your child scoops pom-poms and delivers them to the correct “address.”
Try:
A color-coded map
A pretend mailbag
A race against a timer
4. Music Scoop & Freeze
Play music while they scoop.
When it stops → freeze like a statue!
If they drop the pom-pom when frozen, they restart that round.
5. Scooping Patterns
Make simple pattern cards (blue-blue-red, red-yellow-red, etc.).
Your child scoops pom-poms into a line to copy the pattern.
Or… have them create a pattern for YOU to follow!
6. Color Hunt Challenge
Hide pom-poms around the room. Your child must scoop only the color you call out.
Make it silly:
“Scoop only the colors that make you think of a rainbow!”
“Scoop only the colors that you’d find in a bowl of cereal!”
At Creating Connections OT, we’re here to help your child thrive—emotionally, physically, and socially. If this post resonated with you and you're wondering what the next step looks like, our New Client Page has everything you need. From what to expect in your first session to how we support your child’s unique goals, it’s all just a click away.