Did you know this Saturday, December 7th, is Letter Writing Day?!
What better time of year than the holidays, to have your little ones practice their writing then by writing a letter to Santa! Child’s handwriting is precious, especially seeing it drafted as a letter to Santa expressing their holiday wishes. Writing letters to Santa is a great way for your children to practice their handwriting but also a way you can build into your families holiday traditions.
Want to keep your kids busy while you get ready for the holidays? Here are some fun ways to keep your kids busy on the upcoming days off.
Scissors and Snowflakes: Kids of all ages can enjoy the fun of making snowflakes with scissors and paper. The act of paper folding, careful cutting (use age appropriate scissors) and observing the ensuing patterns are great visual tactile activities. Have everyone in the family participate, and decorate walls windows or packages with snowflakes that don’t freeze, but will warm you all winter long.
Today, much to our daughter’s delight, our grandson displayed an outpouring of all the ways he’s been learning to write. Brayden attends a great preschool and has been consistently exposed to letters, numbers and opportunities to write. Being a kinesthetic, active little boy he does write but often prefers more physical, social activity. Yet, today was a special day. Brayden sat and wrote and wrote and wrote his name! With much delight and pride in what he was doing, he wrote all the letters in the correct order again and again.
Writing is essential to learning. Whether it’s writing essays, taking notes or writing down homework assignments, the physical act of writing is essential to success in the classroom. Here are some things you can do at home to help your child gain mastery when putting pencil to paper.
1. Provide Easy Access – Create a special place for your kids to write and draw. Be sure pencils, paper, crayons and markers are available. Change the paper from time to time. Half or quarter sheets, colors, sticky notes or note cards will keep things fresh.
2. Monkey See – Monkey Do. Children are very influenced by what they see the adults around them doing. Set the technology tools aside for a bit and let your kids see you taking notes, writing lists and signing your name…. on paper!
The physical act of writing is essential to success in the classroom and in life. As literate beings we need to know how to read and communicate using the written word. I still remember being in elementary school and filling pages and pages with evenly spaced, continuous circles and lines, in preparation for cursive writing. As an artist kid, I rather enjoyed those assignments and still find them in my current day doodles.
