Copybooks are not scary. How to teach children to write through a fun game

Modern requirements for the skill set of first-graders are becoming increasingly more complex. If a preschooler has not had time to learn to read or write, it will be much more difficult for him to master the school curriculum. And constant failures will discourage him and deprive him of motivation for further study. How to teach a child to write letters and not discourage him from learning?

Before you start training

Writing is one of the most difficult skills for a child to master. It requires him to have many previous skills, so there is no point in teaching a baby to write letters in calligraphic handwriting as soon as he turns 3 years old: he simply will not be prepared for it.

So what should you do before teaching your child to write letters? Give him those very preliminary skills: teach him to sit correctly at the table, without hunching over, without “pecking” his nose into a notebook, without propping up the table with his chest, show him how to hold a pen correctly, pressing it evenly when writing, help him gain a rich vocabulary.

Before learning to write, a child must:

• know all the letters of the alphabet, understand what sounds are written with their help (the letter “El” is the sound [l]);
• know the difference between block and capital letters;
• distinguish between vowels and consonants;
• determine by ear the number of words in a sentence, syllables in a word, identify the necessary sounds in it by ear;
• find a stressed syllable in a word.

That is, it makes more sense to first teach a preschooler to read and then to write. After all, he must understand what exactly he is writing, and most importantly, why it is needed. Without knowing how to read, a child will not be able to write a single word or even a syllable.

Make sure your baby is learning in a comfortable environment. Select a desk and chair of such dimensions that the child can sit comfortably. The chair must have a back. Provide your child with quality writing materials. The pen should not be too big, not heavy, the paste in it should be written clearly, with contrast, but not smudge or run. There must be a lamp on the table that illuminates the notebook on the left (or on the right if the child is left-handed).

How to teach a child to write - stages and teaching methods

Learning to write takes place in two stages: preparation and practice. The preparatory stage lasts from 3 to 5 years, and practice begins after 5 and continues at school.

Preparation

Before holding a hand, children must learn:

• manipulate small objects using scissors, felt-tip pens, plasticine, mosaics;
• maintain posture and sit correctly at the table. Show with your example what the correct back position at the table looks like. You need to keep your back straight and your shoulders at the same level. Tilt your head slightly forward and keep it no lower than 30-35 cm above the table. Make sure that your chest does not touch the tabletop, your legs are on the floor and bent at a right angle. Your hands should rest on the table, and your elbows should protrude slightly beyond the edge. Make comments if your child slouches at the table;
• use a pencil. Buy triangular pencils - they make it easier to explain how to place your fingers correctly and hold them with your hand. After them, you can switch to regular round pencils for drawing, and then to pens;
• navigate on paper. Develop spatial thinking by talking about positions from the edge, center, and different sides of the sheet. Speak out each movement, specifying that you place the pen on the left or right, move closer to the center or to the bottom of the sheet;
• distinguish letters and know the alphabet. They move on to writing after they have learned the alphabet and learned to read. To transfer letters onto paper, the child must imagine their image.

Practical writing exercises

Having completed the preparation, they learn how to write printed letters in several stages.

We write with our fingers

The letters are pronounced and made from large seeds or buttons. They can be sculpted from plasticine or drawn on a foggy window.

Learning the elements of letters

Write elements of letters and numbers on album sheets. Vertical and horizontal lines, circles, ovals and other simple shapes are written many times in a row. The most difficult thing for children to do is write the “tails” - the upper and lower elements of letters such as B, V, D, Z, U, Ts, Shch.

Explain and play

Tell your child what a string is. All letters, numbers and other symbols must be clearly within its boundaries - no higher, no higher.

Start memorizing the spelling of letters with a game. For example, let the child compare what is written with the world around him: the letter “O” is like the sun or a ball, “S” is like a crescent, “U” is like a slingshot, “F” is like a bug or a butterfly. This will help your baby remember letters faster.

Having chosen the letter that you want to learn to write with your child, first show how to write it yourself. Repeat several times until the child remembers the algorithm of actions. Try to comment on your movements: “Now you and I are learning to write the letter C. We draw a line from top to bottom, smoothly, with a bend, without lifting our hands.”

Alternatively, you can try drawing a symbol in the air - show it to your child, and then ask him to repeat it several times. After that, move on to practicing on paper.

We work with copybooks

Move on to writing printed letters in copybooks - special notebooks for practicing writing. Buy copybooks for preschoolers that offer a variety of exercises.

In copybooks, the child will trace the letters at the dots, complete them according to the model, or paint over the empty contours. The parent decides which copybooks to choose. There is no consensus which technique is more effective. One child finds tasks easy, while another has difficulties. The key to success is regular exercise.

We write in syllables

A difficult stage, which is started if the child is already good at writing block letters. Start writing two-syllable words: ma-ma, pa-pa, vo-da, ka-sha and others. During class, talk out loud with your child what he writes.

Learning numbers and numbers

Take a squared notebook and first talk about the center, corners and middle of the sides of the cell. When explaining the designation of the number, pronounce each action. For example, the number “1” is written like this: place the pen just above the center of the cell, draw a straight line from the center to the upper right corner, and then from there draw a long, straight line to the center of the bottom cell.

Learning calligraphy

It can take several years to develop beautiful handwriting. You need to connect and write letters correctly, and if you do not master this technique, then your child will have to relearn to meet the requirements of the school curriculum.

Use copybooks to practice letter combinations and develop writing technique. By 3rd grade, move on to copying passages from books in beautiful handwriting. Practice is the fundamental principle in calligraphy.

How to choose a copybook?

The range of printed products offers all kinds of copybooks for developing writing skills in children of different ages. Choose notebooks that:

1. The character patterns are repeated on each line or as often as possible on the same page. It is easier for a child to write based on the sample located on the side of the pen than on the one indicated once at the top of the page.
2. The first exercises are devoted to writing simple geometric shapes or letter elements. The presented material is compiled according to the scheme “from simple to complex.”
3. Learning starts with printed letters, not capital symbols.

Bestsellers among copybooks for writing practice:

How to teach a child to write if he is left-handed?

Children who find it easier to do everything with their left hand do not need to be retrained. Successful learning is made up of 4 components:

1. Seating at the table.
2. Handle grip.
3. Notebook position.
4. Writing technique for left-handed people.

For left-handers, the position at the table and the ability to hold a pen are no different from right-handers, with one caveat - the light should be on the right, not the left. The notebook is placed at an angle of 45° or at an angle of 80-90°, so as not to twist the hand. The notebook should lie the same as for right-handed people, but in a mirror image.

Buy special aids for left-handed people, in which the narrow ruler runs at a different angle. Children should write either straight or with a slight slant to the left. Don't force him to lean to the right. Buy thin pens with non-greasy ink so that your child doesn’t get their hands dirty.

The ability to write is the result of complex work, during which the child learns to control hand movements, keep the image of letters and numbers in his mind, remember the elements of symbols and how to connect them. Teach your child consistently: from the ability to hold a pen to writing syllables. Praise efforts, not achievements.

Getting ready for school:

• How to get your child ready for school without going bankrupt?
• The best smartphones for schoolchildren for any budget
• Schoolchild's workplace: choosing a chair and table
• Backpack, satchel or briefcase for a schoolchild: what to choose and how?
• Preparing for September 1: checklist for parents. What should be done?
• What to give a child on September 1?

For parents of first-graders and preschoolers:

• How to enroll in school: a complete guide for parents of first-graders
• What you need to know about a child’s psychological readiness for learning
• A complete first-grader set: what's on the shopping list
• How to help your child adapt to school

September 1, 2021:

• Will there be school lines this year on September 1st?
• Distance education may remain in the Russian Federation after the pandemic
• The school year will not start on September 1? Rospotrebnadzor's opinion
• School breaks will be canceled and classes will start at different times.

2

At what age can children be taught to write?

From the above, it is clear that preparation for writing should not begin at all in the last year before school (certainly not in the last couple of months!), but much earlier. Then the baby will go through the stages of psychological and physical training harmoniously, without overexertion, without racing for quick results (after all, you need to do it in time during the summer, otherwise it will be even more difficult later). In this case, haste is too much stress on a small body, which, at a minimum, will cause the child to become averse to studying in general. And the handwriting in such a “precocious” case is unlikely to be beautiful.

If a preschooler begins to master writing when he already uses a pen or pencil quite deftly, can perform complex movements in coordination, maintain attention and show perseverance for at least 15 minutes, then the graphic results (that is, the writing itself) will be much better. To do this, you need, first of all, to develop fine motor skills and coordination of the movements of the working hand (it doesn’t matter whether it’s right or left).

You can purposefully develop your child’s hands in this direction from the age of 3, when it makes sense to introduce him to the simplest coloring books, felt-tip pens, and pencils. Such classes will gradually prepare the hand for correct writing (first of all, the child will learn to limit the length of the line drawn and draw lines in different directions). Let the young artist try to create his own paintings. Already at this stage, it is important to teach the baby how to hold writing instruments correctly.

In addition, the following types of activities to develop fine motor skills help prepare your hand for writing:

• modeling from plasticine, clay, dough;
• working with cereals, beans, peas;
• finger painting on semolina, flour, a layer of cereal;
• mosaic, constructors;
• cutting with scissors;
• sand games;
• origami;
• lacing.

But parents should remember the age of the child and not delay such activities for more than 15 minutes.

Do not start teaching your child to write “emergency” at an early age (3–4 years). Perhaps this will give you a reason to once again boast to your friends about your child’s abilities, but scientists have found that in this case he will not have beautiful handwriting, since the development of the necessary centers of the brain is accelerated.

General rules

Exercise no more than 15 minutes a day

sugar-home.ru Writing is a complex skill that requires coordinated work of the hand muscles, developed visual memory, spatial perception, attentiveness and perseverance.
It is difficult for a preschooler to master all this at once. Therefore, make it a rule: if you pee a little, you will rest. Overload has a bad effect on the development of a child’s body. The Lifehacker Telegram channel contains only the best texts about technology, relationships, sports, cinema and much more. Subscribe!

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Don't rush

verywellfamily.com
Research shows Young Children's Knowledge of the Symbolic Nature of Writing that children begin to tell the difference between words and pictures as early as three years old, regardless of whether they can read or not. However, at such an early age, children are not yet ready to write: their brains will only develop the necessary skills by the age of 5–7 years.

You can check your readiness to write like this:

• Give your child a piece of paper and ask them to draw something.
• Ask to paint over part of the drawing.
• If the baby constantly turns the sheet of paper and has difficulty changing the direction of the line, it means that he is not yet ready to write letters.

Don't force

userapi.com
If a child does not want to learn letters, do not force him. Do better exercises that develop fine motor skills, spatial thinking and memory.

Marina Suzdaleva

psychologist, early childhood teacher, author of books for parents, creator of the project “Club of Passionate Moms”

There is no formal requirement for a future first-grader to “be able to write.” At the age of 5–7 years, it is worth giving preference to preparing the hand for learning to write at school.

Present information in a playful way

twimg.com
Don’t turn classes into an obligation and yourself into a strict teacher. Teaching a preschooler should resemble an entertaining game.

According to Marina Suzdaleva, it is necessary to exclude any negative emotions, assessments and criticism.

Don't teach cursive letters

o-krohe.ru
Primary school teachers are asking parents about this. The fact is that the ways of writing letters in textbooks vary.

Lyubov Chulkova

neuroeducator-psychologist, speech therapist, writer, primary school teacher, developer of manuals for children, parents and teachers

Parents will teach you to connect and write letters in one way, but the requirements for the program will be different. And the child will have to relearn.

If parents and, most importantly, the child still have a desire to master calligraphy, start practicing the elements of letters. Such exercises can be found in recipes for preschoolers.

Let's move on to the copybooks

After the preschooler begins to quickly and beautifully color and acquires the first drawing skills, you can begin writing lessons with copybooks. The very first copybooks for preschoolers usually contain many simple tasks that help them practice hand motor skills for writing the basic elements of letters: straight and slanted lines, hooks, loops, arcs. The baby will trace straight and wavy lines, various patterns, pictures, geometric shapes. First, you will have to draw solid lines, then dotted (or dotted) ones. And then the child will be able to derive the proposed elements himself according to the model in the copybooks. Children usually like this kind of “drawing”. And if parents also praise for every small success, an incentive for further efforts is provided.

Already in the 1st grade, the child will be required to maintain the size and inclination of letters. But at this age it is quite difficult to do this; children are still poorly oriented on the page. Therefore, to make it easier for them to write letters evenly and beautifully, writing notebooks are usually produced in a thin line with an oblique line. The copybooks are drawn up according to the same principle. This kind of ruling helps the child learn to feel the size and inclination of letters, which contributes to the correct formation of handwriting.

How to choose a copybook?

As mentioned above, copybooks are a great helper for parents. The modern market is flooded with all kinds of aids for teaching literacy. In order for your child to learn to write, you need to know what good handwriting should look like. Below are the general requirements for benefits of this kind:

• The character pattern should be repeated 3 times in a line, and not 1-2 times only in the first line. When writing, a preschooler focuses on the symbol that catches his eye. And when filling out the copybooks, he will look not at the top letters, but at those that he has already written himself. If he didn't print them carefully enough or with errors, each subsequent character will look worse. That is why it is important that the typographic letter is repeated as much as possible and in all lines.
• It is important that the copybook begins not with full letters, but with icons. The guide should go from simple to complex. In this case, it will be much easier for the baby to achieve the desired result. In addition, simple tasks bring positive emotions from success, which will further motivate the preschooler to learn.
• As mentioned above, choose copybooks with printed symbols, and only when the letters begin to come easily to the child, move on to capital symbols.
• Focus on age. Sometimes the manuals indicate the age of the preschooler. Notebooks for younger children differ in that they have more pictures and may contain games. In textbooks for older children, syllables are used, and not just individual symbols. Often, authors insert poems in which the desired letter is often found. They can be learned at your leisure.

Useful tips

In order for writing classes to produce results, parents should remember the following:

• Classes need to be conducted regularly. Exercising for 10 minutes every day will provide more benefits than exercising for half an hour every week.
• If the child is upset or unwell, there is no need to practice.
• Tasks should become more difficult gradually, from simpler to increasingly complex. You cannot jump from tracing straight lines to writing out the letter Z at once.
• It is better to organize classes in the form of a game or competition, and not a boring sitting over the derivation of hooks and squiggles.
• If you fail, you cannot scold the baby. It's better to invite him to try again, with his mother's help.
• Any success, no matter how small, is a reason for praise. This is a good incentive for a child at any age.
• In order for him to have enough strength and perseverance, it is important to follow a sleep and wakefulness regime, nutrition and walks in the fresh air.

So, teaching writing skills should be gradual, systematic, feasible and interesting for the child. Then he will approach school with a good foundation. And this is the key to his success in learning, high self-esteem, and positive motivation.

Preparing to write

Elementary school teachers do not recommend teaching preschoolers to write. The baby’s hand muscles have not yet “ripened” for such movements, besides, parents are not familiar with the correct writing technique and the first-grader then has to relearn, and correcting bad handwriting is more difficult than initially learning calligraphy.

The task for the preschool period is not to teach writing, but to prepare the hand. You need to constantly train your fingers - this will serve as the basis for the ability to write beautifully and correctly. The following will help strengthen your hand muscles:

• finger gymnastics;
• working with paper - cutting, appliqué, origami;
• modeling;
• drawing - with fingers, pencils, crayons, brushes;
• coloring and shading of finished pictures;
• embroidery, knitting, making crafts from natural materials, beads, ribbons;
• collecting mosaics, puzzles, construction sets.

Such activities are also useful in elementary school - for improving fine motor skills.

Tips for teaching your child to write

1. Remember that writing is a complex skill that takes 3-4 years to develop and cannot be mastered in six months. When starting training, you need to understand that it will last a long time and you shouldn’t interrupt it halfway, so as not to lose or spoil an already acquired skill.
2. To teach your child to write correctly, read specialized methodological literature in order to work with the child correctly, and not on a whim.
3. Choose the right copybooks. They must be appropriate to the age and level of development of the child.
4. Try to start teaching your child not in notebooks, but in an album.
5. Visualize the information for the child. Accompany everything you tell your child with pictures or examples on paper or a board. This is important for better memorization of information.
6. To maintain the child’s interest in classes, you should not force him to write the same letter many times, bringing it to perfection. There is no need for this. In preschool age, the main goal is to remember the principle of writing letters and learn to make efforts and concentrate on learning.
7. Write one letter a day, but do it daily.
8. Help your child write the first letters in the copybook by guiding his hand and showing him how to do it.
9. Try to come up with a purpose for your child for which he writes letters. A possible option would be to create a riddle that the child can guess after writing the letters. Prepare a picture with a familiar object and write almost the whole word under it, leaving space for the letter you have studied. After the child successfully completes the task, ask him to write the desired letter under the picture. As you learn to write letters, the number of missing characters in a word should decrease.
10. Try not to throw away the letters your child has written, but analyze them. You will be able to see from them which elements are more difficult for the child and you will be able to give additional tasks on the material that requires reinforcement.
11. Try to brighten up your activities with your child by coming up with various interesting explanations so that writing does not seem boring to your child. Compete with him, bring the letters to life or show that they can have eyes, a back, or a tummy.

Following simple rules helps to overcome difficulties in teaching a child to write in block letters and maintain a warm, trusting relationship with the child. The right approach to learning is the basis for maintaining your child’s interest, your peace of mind and further success in school.

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Why you need to be able to write

In answering this question, there are several fundamental reasons for the importance of writing:

• Firstly, the ability to write allows people to understand each other through this very writing. When a person says something incorrectly or without knowing how to find words, it is quite difficult to understand him. The situation is similar with letters.
• Secondly, the ability to write is a manifestation of respect for the traditions and laws of the Russian language and the people as a whole.
• Thirdly, the ability to write is a serious tool with which you can interact with people.
• Fourthly, the ability to write allows you to achieve success in learning, as well as simply get a job or engage in some activity related to writing
• And finally, fifthly, the ability to write allows a person to form a first impression about himself. It’s almost like appearance - when a person is unkempt, with an unwashed head and dirty nails (that is, he writes haphazardly and makes mistakes even in the simplest words), one gets the same impression about him, but when he is well-groomed and looks great (in other words, beautiful and writes competently) is completely different.

Thus, the importance of writing skill is very difficult to overestimate. But, naturally, in order for a child to be able to write beautifully, correctly and competently, his education needs to be addressed. Yes, it may not be very easy, but it is extremely important. Besides, if you teach your child to read and count, why not teach him to write?

Many parents ask themselves the question of how to do this while their children are still very young. They are looking for all sorts of ways to teach written literacy, develop beautiful handwriting, expand vocabulary, etc., so that the child can go to school prepared, achieve great success in school, keep up with classmates, etc. It is for these reasons that from the first years of life, mothers and fathers dilute the daily life of their children with different activities and lessons.

If your idea is not a manifestation of ambition or a whim, but a true desire to raise a healthy, holistic and harmonious personality in your child, the information presented below is just for you.

Before you start teaching your child to write, you need to pay attention to one very important point. This is where we will start.

Reasons for Slow Writing

A child may write slowly due to the following factors:

• severe fatigue;
• decreased performance;
• lack of a proper daily routine with rest breaks;
• individual characteristics, perhaps your child behaves slowly in all matters;
• lack of automated writing skill.

1. Lack of parallelism in the writing of elements and incorrect tilt may occur due to improper sitting or positioning of the notebook.
2. Difficulties in writing large elements and the appearance of jagged lines indicate that your baby needs to strengthen his hand muscles and develop fine motor skills.
3. If you notice that your child leaves gaps between letters or words that are too small or too large, this indicates a lack of spatial awareness. Praise your child for his beautiful letters, do not forget to describe each correctly written element.
4. When a child misses individual letters in words, he most likely has problems with phonemic awareness. In this case, it is important to pronounce the words out loud, syllable by syllable.