It may look like scribble to us, but this early scribbling and ‘playing at writing’ is an important step on the journey to becoming a writer. Your child will know what these marks mean and will love to tell you about them!
Top tips to help your child on this exciting journey:
‘Celebrate the Scribble’ by having a special place to collect and display your child’s marks and drawings.
Listen to your child and talk to them about their marks and what they mean.
Let your child see you writing. Use everyday opportunities like writing a ‘don’t forget’ list to show your child writing in action and to talk to them about writing and explain why we write.
Involve your child! Encourage your child to join in with everyday writing activities such as ‘signing’ their name on a birthday card or adding items to your shopping list.
Bring writing into everyday play. You could make a map with your child to go with their train set or write price labels for food when you are playing shops together.
Make the most of every opportunity. Encourage your child to use sticks to make marks in the mud when out on a walk or in the sand when playing on the beach
For more fun ideas for mark marking click the link on the sidebar.
Top Tip
Make it big! Your children need to develop strong gross motor skills such as muscles in their legs and upper arms before being able to hold a small pencil. So using big paintbrushes with a bucket of water to make marks on the floor and fences for a fun outdoor activity.
