Pre Reading and Writing Skills For Preschoolers

Allowing children in the early years to freely draw, write and form shapes is necessary for later experience in learning to write letters and words.  Consider, if a child has never freely created a scribble, line or circle, how will they form the letter 's' or 'a'? Drawing and writing can happen in many places ... in the dirt with a stick, on a chalkboard, paper or back of a cereal box, with a pencil, texta, stick, finger or brush. Letters can be formed in nature with leaves off a tree, gum nuts, sticks, flowers or pieces of bark. In the early years shapes, lines, letters and numbers can be anywhere.   

Below is the NSW style font that is used in NSW Public Schools. This is a guide for the formation of letters and numbers to use when writing with your child. Please take note of lower case and capital letters and use them where they belong (especially when teaching your child to write their name - mostly only the first letter of their name is a capital).

Some important tips for families;

• Allow children to freely draw, to form shapes and lines

• Role model the correct formation of letters and numerals

• Involve children – write a shopping list, leave a note for someone etc

• Role model left to right and top to bottom

• USE LOWER CASE LETTERS (unless a capital belongs)