Today’s guest post is by Anna at The Measured Mom. I discovered her blog just a few months ago, when she started linking up the the Hearts For Home bloghop, and I immediately fell in love! She has the type of blog that makes you read every. single. post, because they are that awesome! Today, I am quite excited to share with you this AWESOME guest post that she’s written. Without further ado, here’s Anna…
What’s the best way to teach kids to write the alphabet? Many of us will head to the local discount store and purchase a workbook of handwriting pages. We’ll give our preschooler a pencil, cringe when he holds it wrong, and hope he has the determination to sit and practice his letters for as long as it takes.
Sometimes this works!
Many times, it doesn’t.
Did you know that the best way to teach preschoolers to write the alphabet is to start simple and gradually increase the challenge? Handwriting pages should be the last activity on the continuum. First, children need lots of fun and creative ways to write the alphabet.
How to Teach Preschoolers to Write the Alphabet
1. First, give your child a large block letter on a piece of paper. Have him fill it with objects.
This is a great way to introduce kids to making letters. Just draw or print a large block letter on a piece of paper, and give them items to fill in the space. A great idea is to use items that begin with that letter. In this picture, my little guy is filling a W with Wheat Thins.
Here are just a few ideas:
A – alphabet stickers
B – buttons
C – cotton balls
D – dominos
E – egg shells
F – feathers
G – gems
2. When he’s ready, have your child make a letter out of toys or household objects.
This is more challenging because your child must create the shape of the letter. Start with the straight letters. Here are some ideas for building materials:
- chop sticks
- tooth picks
- Q-tips
- craft sticks
- utensils
- Lincoln Logs
- blocks
Make curvy letters with objects that can be easily molded:
- play dough
- cooked spaghetti
- yarn or string
- shoelaces
3. The next challenge is to make letters with a set of small manipulatives.
These glass gems are so fun to play with! There are countless other possibilities for materials — here are just a few:
- buttons
- round magnets
- rocks
- pom poms
- cereal
- chocolate chips, marshmallows, or candy
4. When your preschooler is ready, have him draw the letter with his finger.
We love using this wooden tray so we can shake it clear and write again! In this picture my preschooler has written in colored sand. You can also try:
- shaving cream
- whipping cream, pudding, applesauce, or other edible treat
- sugar
- cornmeal (this one works especially well)
- flour
- salt
5. Finally, pull out some simple handwriting pages for your preschooler.
I started creating these Letters of All Sizes pages for my older preschooler when he was first starting to write letters. He would start with the biggest letters and continue until he had filled in the tiniest ones. Now my three-year-old enjoys them, too.
Eventually, my preschooler had enough control to master this simple handwriting practice on two large lines.
Finally, we moved onto these pages – you can see how they progress from easy to hard. After your child has mastered this kind of worksheet, he should be ready for those handwriting workbooks you’ll find in the store!
One last tip: Don’t go in alphabetical order; instead, start with the easy-to-form letters and end with the trickiest ones.
Here’s the progression we follow:
E, F, H, I, L, T, V, W, X, K, M, N, Y, A, Z, C, O, G, Q, B, D, J, P, U, R, S
About Anna:
Anna taught for eight years and received her MEd with a focus on literacy before beginning her career as a stay-at-home mom. She loves teaching her daughter (6) after her day at school and spending all day with her boys (4,3,1). Anna blogs at The Measured Mom, where she shares free education resources with parents and classroom teachers.
Wow, what an amazing wealth of information about how to teach your kids to write! Thank you, Anna, for doing an AMAZING job! I know this is going to help so many people teach their kids how to write in a fun and hands-on way!
What other suggestions do you also have for teaching preschoolers how to write?
If you’ve enjoyed this post, please make sure that you let Anna know how much you appreciate it by leaving a comment below!
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