Preschool Writing

Preschool writing involves encouraging children to express themselves on paper, and strengthening the muscles they need to physically write.

Many parents begin by teaching children to write their names. Your child can start writing in sand, shaving cream, pudding or rice before progressing to pen and paper. Follow this link to find additional ideas for preschool writing activities.

Here are some ways to encourage your children to express and communicate their ideas:

Let your child make cards, or dictate letters to friends, siblings, parents, grandparents, public figures or even cartoon characters. You can also let your child write a letter using her own symbols and read it back to you.
Here's a letter my daughter wrote that says, "Dear mom, You are such a good Mommy."
Tell your child stories and let your child tell stories to you. Or begin a story and let each member of your family add a sentence. Preschool nursery rhymes and preschool finger plays are also good language activities.

Staple blank pages together to form a homemade book. Let your child decorate the cover and draw pictures on each page. Write the story your child dictates. You can also have your child retell and illustrate one of his favorite stories.

Help your child make lists, a sign for a bedroom or labels for toy buckets. You can also make and decorate a list of family rules. When my oldest was three, he sat with me as I wrote our Christmas budget, and made one of his own by writing random numbers on paper.

Keep pictures in a scrapbook or photo album, and have your child dictate the captions. Or take pictures while cooking or planting flowers, and make a cookbook or how to manual.