Writing
Dear parents/carers,
We hope that this information about children’s writing development will be
useful to you.
At Sandcastle Nursery & Preschool we provide opportunities for children to learn
through their play. Children will learn how to form letters correctly when they start
school. Our role as nursery practitioners is to provide opportunities for them to
develop their fine motor skills and hand eye co-ordination, as well as providing
resources for them to explore and experiment with.
It is an exciting moment when your child begins to experiment with different-shaped
scribbles and patterns. This is known as 'mark making'. It is the start of a journey
towards being able to write and is a real developmental milestone.
Like with any interests, if your child is showing an interest in letters and mark making
at home please let their key person know so that they can plan some fun activities
for them at nursery.
Mark making is important for many reasons. It is a visible way for children to tell
stories and express feelings, record what they have to say, solve problems and
discover solutions, as well as having fun!
By providing children with a variety of mark-making opportunities you can help them
develop imaginatively, creatively and physically.
Below are some fun play activities which have a direct effect upon developing
perception, control and sensory experiences. These are things which we provide at
nursery that you could also try at home.
Activities to develop pencil grip:
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Play dough – pinching, squeezing with thumb and forefinger.
Threading – beads, pasta and straws.
Picking up small objects – using tweezers, pipettes/eye droppers.
Finger rhymes – stretching, curling fingers for example Twinkle Little Star or
Tommy Thumb.
Water play – using spray toys and spray bottles.
Craft activities – glue sticks and paint brushes.
Icing cakes – using a plastic dispenser to push and squeeze out the icing.
Strengthening activities – swinging from the climbing frame or grasping to
climb and crawl.
Activities to develop correct rotation:
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Stirring cake mixture – encourage a two-handed operation, one to hold the
bowl and one to stir. Encourage an anti-clockwise rotation, as this is how
children learn how to write.
Mixing powder paint and blending colours – similar to above.
Mark-making should go beyond a pencil and paper and include a range of textures
and resources.
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Paint using an easel and large brushes.
Water painting outside using a paint brush and just water.
Draw shapes in the air with a wand.
Dance with a ribbon in your writing hand.
Chalk on boards or dark coloured sugar paper.
Draw in the sand.
Finger paint on the table.
Make marks in shaving foam.
Make rubbings on rough surfaces
Draw in corn flour slime.
Make tactile displays that allow the child to change or move the objects.
Stencils and tracing paper.
Learning to hold a pencil and make marks that ultimately lead to writing is a complex
development.
If children show an interest in writing their name or forming letters we will provide
them with lots of pencils, pens, paper, wooden letters and tracing paper. Copies of
children’s names are also available for them to practice copying their own names if
they wish to.
If you child is showing an interest in letters or writing their own name we would
encourage them to begin writing in lower case.
As always if you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask.