How to Make Writing the Alphabet Fun to Learn

You can make writing the alphabet fun for your toddler or preschooler. If your child shows an interest in learning to write, try these steps and you might be surprised by how quickly he catches on!

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. If your child has a favorite letter of the alphabet, encourage learning to write that one first, even if it isn't part of his name. Some kids like the letter Q, for instance, because it has a curly tail. Or perhaps the letter of the day on Sesame Street has caught their interest. Any letter is a good starting point - you don't have to begin with A or the first letter of their name. Also, if he is only interested in one letter for an entire month, you don't necessarily have to push him to try other letters. When he masters writing a letter, he will like that confidence. Encourage him to expand his alphabet writing repertoire, but don't force him, or he may rebel and decide that writing is not fun after all.

2. Use a sing-song approach to help him remember the motions. Describe the motion of the pencil with words: For the letter M, say, "up, down, up, down." For W, say, "down, up, down, up." Make it fun by emphasizing the "ups" or "downs" or by putting a tune to it. It will feel more like a game than a task.

3. Write each part of the letter one step at a time, and show him by writing it yourself. You make the first line for "E" and have him mimic what you did. Then you make the lines across, one at a time, as he follows. "First, let's make the line down for our E. Good! Now let's make a line across the top. You did it! Hey, check it out - we made an F! Let's turn our F into an E by putting one more line at the bottom. Yay! We made an E!"

4. Use a dry erase marker board or a chalk board for practice. Not only is it more fun than pencil and paper, it's also easier to make small corrections with a quick wipe of the finger rather than making him erase his hard work when there's a minor mistake. The bathtub is a great place for practicing writing with special bath time crayons or foam.

Tips & Warnings

• Try not to let him get discouraged when his letters don't look as nice as yours. Encourage him constantly with praise for nice lines or the roundness of the "O" he made. "I've never seen such a wonderful T before! That is a fantastic T, kiddo!"
• Some kids are willing to try tracing letters on a printed worksheet, or tracing letters you wrote first. Others prefer to start from scratch and refuse to trace. Have worksheets handy or make your own by writing letters with dotted lines. You can let him trace the letters on a sales ad or in a magazine. When you see a sign that's within his height, such as in a store, let him use his finger to trace letters, which will reinforce his memory of the motions.
• When your child learns to write a new letter, encourage him to show his accomplishment to friends and family. "Daddy's home from work, let's show him what you learned to do today! Daddy, look at this wonderful K he learned to write!" "Let's call Grandma and you can tell her that you know how to write ABC now!"
• Let kids sign greeting cards on their own instead of you signing for them. Don't worry about the card looking messy - people enjoy receiving cards signed by children! And the kids will feel proud and grown up for being able to do such an important job.
• Of course we all know that kids develop at completely varying rates and levels. Some will learn to write their entire name and address before preschool, and others may struggle through kindergarten. The important thing is to never discourage them by giving them the feeling that you don't think they can do it. Accentuate the positive - encourage what they can do, and never stop trying to work with them on the things with which they struggle.