Mark-making and my name
English · Early Years · The School
Marks before letters
Letters are made of moves. Your hand needs to practise those moves first. Draw big straight lines down a page. Draw round-and-round circles. Draw pointy zigzags like hills. Every letter you will write uses these three moves. Big bold marks now mean neat letters later.
Holding the pencil
Pinch the pencil with your thumb and first finger. Let it rest on your middle finger. Grown-ups call this the tripod grip. Does it feel wobbly? Try a chunky crayon first. Draw slowly. This is not a race. Slow beats fast every time.
The most important letter
The first letter of YOUR name is the best letter of all. Ask a grown-up to write your name in big letters. Point to the first one. Trace it with your finger. Now copy it with your crayon. Make it as big as you like. That letter belongs to you.
Take the name AMIR. Say each letter as you make it. A — two slanted lines and a bar across. M — down, up, over, down, up, down. I — a line and a dot. R — down, round, kick out. That is four letters, not one squiggle. Each one has its own start and finish. Now cover the card. Write it again from the letters you named.