Activities

Free Colour Matching Activity: Strengthening Little Hands

A reusable peg-matching board that practises colours and the pincer grip your child needs for handwriting. Small enough to keep in your bag for cafes and waiting rooms.

Updated 6 September 2023

Colour matching activity: coloured pegs clipped to a cardboard square with wiggly matching lines

Quick answer

Colour twelve pegs in six colours, clip six to a cardboard square, draw matching wiggly lines across it and ask your child to match the rest. Ages 2 to 5, no mess.

This activity gives your child the opportunity to practise colours and the pincer grasp, which supports their handwriting skills. It can be reused over and over again, and it is a great set to keep in your bag for a coffee shop or a waiting room.

The pincer grip is the coordination of the index finger and thumb to hold an item. Each time you hold a pen, open a peg or button a shirt, you are using it. It may seem like second nature to an adult, but for a child it is an important milestone, and strengthening the muscles in their hand will let them hold a pencil or pen with confidence.

Child matching coloured pegs to lines on the colour matching board

1. Peg colour matching board

Match coloured pegs to wiggly lines on a square of cardboard. Reusable, and small enough to keep in a bag for cafes and waiting rooms.

Best forColour recognition and pincer grip
Age2 to 5
Time15 to 20 minutes
Mess levelLow
DifficultyEasy
CostUnder £3

You will need

A square of cardboard
12 wooden pegs
Marker pens in six colours

How to set it up

Colour the pegs in six colours, two pegs of each.
Clip six pegs down the left side of the cardboard and draw a wiggly line from each peg to the other side, in the same colour as the peg.
Ask your child to trace each line with a finger, then match the remaining six pegs to the right-hand ends.

Why it helps

Opening a peg uses the pincer grip: index finger and thumb working together, the same grip needed to hold a pencil or fasten a button. It seems like second nature to an adult, but for a child it is a real milestone, and strengthening those small muscles makes holding a pen far more comfortable later on. Matching the colours practises recognition and naming at the same time.