Help your child learn to write.

Workbooks where kids have to sit quietly and trace letters repeatedly can be tedious and uninspiring for young kids. There should be no pressure to get them started to write — this could be counterproductive and make them dislike writing even more. We can encourage them to practice penmanship, but the key is to make it fun and engaging. We have some ideas you can try.

Nellie Edge, a kindergarten and early-literacy specialist suggests an activity you can do as early as toddler stage. Spray shaving cream on the kitchen counter or table and help your child write his name in the foam. The next day, draw letters with finger-paints. Wikki Stix, Play-Doh, and Lego blocks are toy-box favorites you can also use to shape letters. “You want to send the message to your child that learning to write is going to be one of the most fun things to do,” says Edge.

Where do I begin?

It’s best to start by teaching your child to print her name. But even though capital letters are easier to write than lowercase ones, don’t encourage her to write her name in all caps. Come kindergarten, it can be a hard habit to break. When your child knows how to write her name, then you can move on to the rest of the uppercase letters.

My child’s letters are hardly legible!

Many 4-year-olds and even some 5-year-olds have difficulty holding a standard-size pencil, which makes their handwriting ultra-messy. Slide-on rubber grips sold in school-supply stores can make it easier for your child to use a pencil. A small golf pencil can also do the trick if the grippers don’t help. The length of the pencil is what gives some kids trouble.

Experts advice parents to make time for activities that give the pincer grip — the ability to hold objects between the thumb and index finger — a good workout. Some examples are stringing beads, playing Bingo with Cheerios, putting together puzzles, and building with blocks.

My kid’s letters are written in reverse!

Don’t panic, it’s not dyslexia! Writing letters backwards is common among budding writers. Jan Olsen, an occupational therapist who developed Handwriting Without Tears, a curriculum used in thousands of elementary schools shares a simple strategy using a square blackboard with a wooden border. “Put a smiley face in the top left corner and call it the starting corner,” says Olsen. Then have your child use that as the place to begin writing the letters he tends to reverse, like uppercase B and uppercase D. The border will prevent him from moving left with his lines.

At home, I noticed my kids love to draw or paint pictures. I always remind them to write their name on their artwork or to give it a title or description. Voila… they get to practice some penmanship all in the spirit of doing a fun project!

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