The purpose of this study was to investigate the relation between the buttoning movements and the skillfulness in fingers and hands. The subjects were 54 5-year-old kindergarten infants (21 boys and 33 girls).

The results were as follows:

(1) Characteristics of buttoning movements were considered through the observation of the time required and the movement patterns. The time required for buttoning varied substantially among individuals. The movement was classified into two patterns: ‘push out’ and ‘pick out’. The time required for the ‘pick out’ movement was longer than that for the ‘push out’.

(2) Skillfulness in fingers and hands were measured by a bead-stringing test and a string-tying test. The girls performed better on both tests. Skillfulness in fingers and hands were analyzed by the string-tying test in terms of the time required and the movement patterns.

(3) There was a tendency for common movement patterns in the bead-stringing tests and the buttoning movements. Therefore, it was suggested that infants with higher skillfulness in fingers and hands required less time for buttoning.