Pre-writing skill is an integral skill to be developed by the kids. It develops in a step by step manner corresponding to the child’s age.
| Age | Pre-writing development |
| 1-2 years | 1. The child would attempt to paint using the whole arm movement to make strokes. 2. Scribbles in vertical, horizontal and circle direction. |
| 2-3 years | 1. The child would grasp crayons or pencil using thumb and fingers. 2. Imitates vertical, horizontal stroke. 3. Imitates circle. |
| 3-4 years | 1. The child begins to trace the lines. 2. Copies cross +. 3. Copies square. 4. Imitates diagonal stroke-like. |
| 4-5 years | 1. Tripod grasp to hold the pencil, wrist movement present. 2. Traces the lines with control. 3. Copies triangle. 4. Colors picture. 5. Write numbers, letters and even their name (with the assistance sometimes). |
| 5-6 years | 1. A matured tripod grasp with very limited wrist movement. 2. Write numbers and alphabets without help. 3. Draws basic shapes. |
Prerequisites:
There are certain skills essential to be developed or strengthened before the child achieves the pre-writing skills. They are:
- Postural stability.
- Upper arm stability and strength.
- Hand and finger muscle strength.
- Bilateral coordination.
- Eye-hand coordination.
- Object manipulation.
- Crossing the mid-line.
ACTIVITIES:
Now let’s see some activities that help to satisfy our prerequisites in order to develop pre-writing skills.
- GROSS MOTOR ACTIVITIES
Physical activities like jumping, crawling, climbing, rolling, hopping, etc. are necessary for core muscle strengthening.
- BUILDING BLOCKS
Playing with building blocks would help in strengthening the fingers and hand and assist in the development of the tripod grasp. Also, enhances the development of visual-motor skills.
- LACING THE BEADS
This activity benefits the development of fine motor skills, crossing mid-line ability and eye-hand coordination.
- VERTICAL WALL
Make the child scribble, draw or write on the wall or on a vertical board which in turn supports the postural stability.
- SCISSORING
Using the child-safe scissors, the child is asked to cut papers into strips, shapes, etc., which would strengthen their hand and finger muscles.
- PLAY-DOH
Playing with play-doh also enhance fine motor skills. Many activities can be performed using playdoh, to label few:
- Simply pressing play-doh.
- Using moulds make shapes.
- Construct shapes without moulds.
- Make small balls.
- Flattening the play-doh balls and much more.
- BUTTONING
Fastening and unfastening the button is one of the ADL (Activities of Daily Living) skills that the child must know, and this can also be utilized for developing pre-writing skills. Use different sizes of button and various shapes of buttons as well.
- TONG
With the use of tong, the child would be able to develop pencil grasping skill and knows how much pressure has to put on for writing.
- STICKERS
The child is asked to pull the stickers from the sheet and stick on to the wall or on other papers. This would help in strengthening fine motor skills.
- PAPER FOLDING
Folding a paper to form a shape that resembles an object (for example boat, frog, etc.) is fun and skillful activity for the children which in turn helps to develop the pre-writing skills.
Have fun implementing the above activities with your kid and help them develop the pre-writing skill.
Thank you for these tips, very useful.
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