Tips for Encouraging your Child’s Emerging Writing Skills

Tips for Encouraging your Child’s Emerging Writing Skills

Submitted by Sarah Morris on behalf of Primrose Schools. With preschools across the country, more and more parents are learning what a difference a Primrose education makes.

As a parent, you can help your child learn to communicate effectively. Just a generation ago, writing was considered a dying art. Business was taken care of in person or by telephone, and personal correspondence could be limited to a quick signature on a greeting card. Today, however, people rely on the written word every day to communicate by email, text and instant message. Fortunately, encouraging children to express themselves through writing is surprisingly easy. If you provide a patient, helpful attitude, paper and writing implements, the child will do the rest. Here are some ideas for creating a positive writing environment for your child.

– Don’t stress correct or precise letter formation too early in the process. Focusing instead on helping your child learn to communicate in writing. If children think that the key to writing is good penmanship, they may begin to think of writing as “too hard.” The fine motor skills and coordination required to form letters on paper are still developing in a small child and will continue to improve over time.

– Always have plenty of paper available so that children can practice writing as well as listening, speaking and reading as a natural part of play.

– Make reading an everyday thing. Children learn important things about how others put ideas and pictures into written words when you read to them as part of their daily routine.

– Model writing behaviors. Seeing you make lists, write notes, letters, emails and text messages normalizes writing and teaches children that this is what adults do. When your child asks how to form a letter, teach by showing, describing proper pencil-holding technique and narrating the strokes as you write. Help to build mind-body connections by having your child practice forming letters in the air using broad arm strokes as well as more precise finger motions.

– Casually mention to your child that you are writing an email or letter to a friend or relative. Help your child send his or her own emails. Use an online word processor for children to help your child “break away” from the technical aspects of writing and experience the joy of communicating freely through writing.