It is vitally important that your child can both read and write his/her name before starting school. So much revolves around “names”. Your child’s name will be everywhere, from lunchboxes to coat hooks, to worksheets and even where he/she should sit. Let’s face it, there is no avoiding it!
It is often these small details that cause children the most distress. I have seen children cheerfully wave “bye-bye” only to dissolve into tears over lunch box. If your child is quiet he/she may be slow to ask for help and fret over which box is theirs. There are bound to be other children with the same lunchbox . If your child cannot read his/her name on a lunch box or perhaps on a coat hook then how will he or she know which to choose? !
Please, please do not teach your child to write in capital letters only!
I hope that I am making this point very clear for you ;). If you do, your child and his/her teacher will be forced to spend time and effort “unlearning” this habit and learning to write it correctly.
Many of us have developed bad habits when it comes to letter formation. This is more the case with lower case letters than capital. You might find the link below useful for both you and your child. This clever website demonstates the correct way to write lower case letters.
Simply click on a letter and then on the pencil icon at the bottom. You just need to watch and learn. The red dot indicates where the pencil should be placed to start the letter. If you click on the “ear” icon you will hear what phonetic sound the letter makes.
If your child can already write his/her name why not bookmark this page . You can then use it when your child has handwriting or phonics homework.
Check back later in the week for more handwriting tips for children starting school!
Have fun,
Miss Mernagh 🙂
p.s Don’t forget to tell all your friends too
missmernagh.com 