Preschool students need plenty of handwriting practice with letter formation. Make letter writing interesting and provide essential repetitive practice by encouraging students to create rainbow letters. Clearly write targeted letters on pieces of paper and photocopy enough copies for students. Place the papers, crayons and a completed example at the classroom writing center. Allow students to repeatedly trace over the large letters with various crayons, creating a rainbow-colored letter. The repetition of this writing practice encourages muscle memory and fine motor skills. For advanced writers, allow them to trace their names or familiar words with rainbow colors.
Preschoolers enjoy social interaction and building friendships, so a great way to create writing interest is through name writing. A name wall is a valuable and engaging reference for the writing center. Post each student's name and picture in alphabetical order. Encourage students to write letters and draw pictures for their classmates, making sure to include who the creations are to and from. Create for each student a small book titled "My Friends" and allow them to draw and label pictures of their classmates. This is a perfect time to introduce and discuss appropriate use of an uppercase letter when writing names. Throughout the year, students will enjoy writing their own names and their peers' names.
Even reluctant writers will love "magic writing" at the writing center. Stock the center with white construction paper, white crayons and watercolor paints. Encourage students to write letters, words and scribbles with the white crayons. Because the writing will be difficult to see, this is an appropriate time to encourage scribbling, an important step in the learning process. When a student has completed his writing, allow him to place the paper on a plastic tray and paint the paper with watercolors. The watercolor paint will "magically reveal" his writing. Students will enjoy the surprise element of this writing practice.
This activity provides practice with both letter recognition and letter formation, especially for the "letter of the week." Write a very large uppercase and lowercase letter on a piece of paper. Photocopy enough copies for the class and place at the writing center with bingo dot markers. Hang a completed example at the center to encourage independent success. When visiting the writing station, students will create letters by "dotting" the bingo marker along the lines. Students must carefully follow the formation to create the dot letters--a task that strengthens their concentration and fine motor skills. Provide several colors of bingo markers to keep students interested and engaged. To encourage creative drawing, challenge students to create pictures using only dots.