brigid | Writing Readiness

When Niko and I went and enrolled him in pre-k, the teachers asked a few questions about his skills and if we read to him at home etc. They mentioned that it would be helpful if we could work on him writing his name. I think I’ve mentioned before that we have been working on teaching him to write, and I figured I’d tell you some of the stuff that worked for us.

Pencil Holding

I thought about getting some of those triangular finger positioners that you can slide onto pencils, but decided to skip it. Like a lot of really little kids, Niko has a hard time physically holding a writing utensil. One of the things that helps him hold his fingers the correct way is to put a little something in the palm of his hand for his smaller fingers to curl around. We initially used a bit of wadded up tissue, which he objected to. I picked up a little baggie of pom poms from the Target dollar bin and he likes those a lot better. We don’t have to remind him as often to hold his writing utensil the correct way, it’s becoming a habit with him.

Making Lines

There’s a few things we’re doing to teach him how to make straight, slanted, and curved lines (IE, letter components). One of the earliest things I did was draw dots on a piece of paper and have him draw a line from dot to dot. It was a fun thing that we did together, and we’d take turns making the lines. You could also use stickers or something for the “dots.” This ties in to later activities like connect-the-dots and draw-a-line-to-match games.

There are worksheets you can buy from stores or print from the internet that have dotted lines to trace, making up straight, diagonal, curved, etc lines.

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When Niko and I went and enrolled him in pre-k, the teachers asked a few questions about his skills and if we read to him at home etc. They mentioned that it would be helpful if we could work on him writing his name. I think I’ve mentioned before that we have been working on teaching him to write, and I figured I’d tell you some of the stuff that worked for us. Pencil Holding I thought about getting some of those triangular finger positioners that you can slide onto pencils, but decided to skip it. Like a lot of really little kids, Niko has a hard time physically holding a writing utensil. One of the things that helps him hold his fingers the correct way is to put a little something in the palm of his hand for his smaller fingers to curl around. We initially used a bit of wadded up tissue, which he objected to. I picked up a little baggie of pom poms from the Target dollar bin and he likes those a lot better. We don’t have to remind him as often to hold his writing utensil the correct way, it’s becoming a habit with him. Making Lines There’s a few things we’re doing to teach him how to make straight, slanted, and curved lines (IE, letter components). One of the earliest things I did was draw dots on a piece of paper and have him draw a line from dot to dot. It was a fun thing that we did together, and we’d take turns making the lines. You could also use stickers or something for the “dots.” This ties in to later activities like connect-the-dots and draw-a-line-to-match games. There are worksheets you can buy from stores or print from the internet that have dotted lines to trace, making up straight, diagonal, curved, etc lines. <a href+http://donnayoung.org/penmanship/redines.htm="href+http://donnayoung.org/penmanship/redines.htm">Donnayoung.org,</a> <a href="http://www.kidslearningstation.com/tracing-lines/">Kidslearningstation.com,</a> and <a href="http://www.shirleys-preschool-activities.com/free-printable-preschool-worksheets.html#alphabet">Shirleys-preschool-activities.com</a> all provide free, printable worksheets. A web search for “connect the dots” (we use google image searches) will give you a TON of free, age-appropriate connect-the-dot activities. We usually use dinosaur themed ones. The Right Paper Beginning writers need very wide ruled paper. You can buy packs of it at the store, or print it off from the internet. We’ve mostly been printing off what we need. Graph paper might be helpful for some kids to help with spacing. I make big dots sometimes showing Niko where to start and end a line. Getting And Keeping Interest Niko’s a bit of a perfectionist and he gets frustrated and upset when he isn’t good at something. He’s really resisted learning to write, and we’ve had a LOT of talks about how nobody’s perfect at things the first time they do them, and that the only way to BECOME good at something is to practice and do it over and over again. We praise him for trying, and point out where he’s improving. But it’s still hard getting him interested in writing! Here’s some things we’ve done in addition to the connecting dots etc. We write words based on his interests: trains, dinosaurs, etc. He wanted to decorate a card board box and turn it into a rocket ship, so I told him the letters and he wrote “rocket ship” on the box. I tell him the letters, or write down for him to copy, dinosaur names. And, of course, his own name. FORBIDDEN/funny words are also great. Among the high-interest words for him are “naughty” words like poop, butt, fart, etc. He is VERY interested in owning those words. He also likes funny words, and writing letters to people. We label his drawings, both with him writing words on things he’s drawn and with me writing words on things he’s drawn. He’s already engaged with the picture he’s drawn and sometimes he’ll stay engaged while we write on it. He also likes to turn drawings into letters and write messages on them, and to write his name on them. A white board. I picked up a Crayola white board in the Target dollar bin recently, and we have some dry-erase markers already for some dry-erase work books he’s completely uninterested in. It’s very wide lined, and he seems to be more comfortable writing on it than on paper. I don’t know if that’s because he can erase mistakes quickly & completely, or if the marker glides along the surface better, or what. But he’s very interested in it and has been “writing words” (the letters H, T, and I mostly, in random combinations) and drawing all over it. Accessible Materials Markers, Crayons, paper, his white board, chalk, and a chalk board are accessible to him at all times. This wasn’t always the case (he’s WAY less likely to write on the walls/floor now) and we’d have to change this up if we had younger kids in the house. But being able to pick up writing utensils and paper at will help keep him interested and keep him practicing without making it a chore. Creative Options There’s letter shaping you can do without pen (or marker, crayon, etc) and paper. You can bend pipe cleaners into letters; make letters out of playdough or clay; trace letters with a chopstick or finger in sand or flour or sugar etc; make letters out of glue and sprinkle glitter or sand etc onto them; make letters out of blocks; make letters out of string. You can do this to introduce letters or supplement them, depending on your kid’s interest and physical ability. Making Words and Words In Everyday Life Some other things we’re doing with him involve manipulating letters into words in different ways, like letter magnets and letters cut out of paper. I also wrote some letters on duplo blocks with a black marker, and he can snap them together to make words. Decals or stickers would also work for that if your handwriting is shaky. We read to him for about 30-40 minutes a day at least, and he has ready access to his books at all times. He also sees us reading a lot. Just reading to your kid is super helpful as it teaches them how writing works (for ex, in English you start at the front of the book and read left to write from the top to the bottom). He tells stories and I write them down and then read them back to him. This emphasizes the importance of writing and reading and gets him involved and interested. Kids love to own their own words, their own stories. I have a little note book that he picked out and I’ll ask him questions (like, what are 3 things you did today, or what are 3 things you like to eat and why) or ask him to tell me a story. Then I write down what he said. Sometimes he illustrates it, too. <hr /> Niko’s not a calligraphy master, not by a long shot. But he’s getting more comfortable writing letters as opposed to drawing them, and getting more confident. School starts at the end of August and we hope to have him comfortably writing every letter of the alphabet by then, and knowing how to string letters together into a single word (IE, in order and all on one line). What are you doing or have you done to help little kids get comfortable with writing? What’s worked for you? What hasn’t worked for you?  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