Mark-making is a not-insignificant step on the way to writing actual letters. To the untrained eye it may seem like those scribbles and scrawls may never turn into anything. But don't be fooled. When your child pretends to be writing, they're practicing fine motor skills, recognizing that letters represent words and learning that words read from left to right. Before you know it, those unidentifiable scribbles will turn into roughly made shapes we like to call letters, and then they'll be writing words while you think, "What happened to my baby?!"
So how can you encourage your kids in this important skill? Through play, of course. If your child isn't attempting to write, don't push it. He'll get there. Perhaps these ideas will help!
Play restaurant. Use a small pad of paper and pen to take "orders". I started doing this for lunch one day, asking Kay what she wanted and giving her two or 3 choices. Of course she then wanted to do the same and take my order. (In fact, that's how I get her to try most things - by doing it first! My secret revealed...)
Pretend doctor. Doctors and nurses have to take notes on their patient. Kay's doctor kit includes a notebook and pen for her to write about the patients she cares for.
Pretend doctor. Doctors and nurses have to take notes on their patient. Kay's doctor kit includes a notebook and pen for her to write about the patients she cares for.
Nature explorer. Okay, not the most obvious choice. But I put together a little kit with a magnifying glass, tweezers and a small cup (and that magic notebook and pen!) and then hid plastic bugs around the house for her to find. I suggested she take notes on the animals she found while she was exploring. Hey, it worked!
Shopping lists. When I try to make a list of anything, Kay is usually right there, asking if she can write too. At first (I hate to say) I would brush her off, "Not now. Why don't you go do _______?" But then I realized, instead of pushing her away, I should just have paper ready for her. Now I do, and she "writes" her own shopping lists with great concentration (and always remembering to ask what we want at the store, too!)
Shopping lists. When I try to make a list of anything, Kay is usually right there, asking if she can write too. At first (I hate to say) I would brush her off, "Not now. Why don't you go do _______?" But then I realized, instead of pushing her away, I should just have paper ready for her. Now I do, and she "writes" her own shopping lists with great concentration (and always remembering to ask what we want at the store, too!)
Homework. A great irony: little kids love to pretend to do homework; school-aged kids hate homework. But I'll take advantage of her interest while I can. I gave her a journal (one of those dollar store ones) and a "special" pen, and she makes a big deal out of "Don't bother me. I'm TRYING to do my HOMEWORK!" She'll sit there for 20 minutes pretending to do homework.
Sending mail. We have a simple pretend mailbox and Kay likes to "write" letters and stick them in, then fetch them from the flap on the back. Perhaps even more fun would be to encourage your child to write letters to distant relatives...or even not so distant ones. Grandparents, especially, would be thrilled to get mail from them, even if it's not necessarily written in any known language. (The bonus would be they just might get mail in return!)
Sending mail. We have a simple pretend mailbox and Kay likes to "write" letters and stick them in, then fetch them from the flap on the back. Perhaps even more fun would be to encourage your child to write letters to distant relatives...or even not so distant ones. Grandparents, especially, would be thrilled to get mail from them, even if it's not necessarily written in any known language. (The bonus would be they just might get mail in return!)
Again, if your child isn't interested in these things, let it go. They'll get there - but only when they're ready and not a second before. I worried when Kay was never interested in writing for the longest time but now, at 5 1/2, she's asking for pen and paper all the time. I only wish I hadn't spent so much time worrying about it! All you can do is make the resources available - they'll take it from there.
I'm excited to be joining up with the 31 Days of ABCs, hosted by All Done Monkey! All month bloggers have been sharing their fun ideas for learning letters; check them out:
