Rachel Said:

How to teach a child to write the alphabet?

We Answered:

Teach the letters one at a time, beginning with the first letter. DO teach upper case (or capital) and lower case as appropriate. Find his first letter everywhere, in books, on signs, on cereal boxes, etc. Make writing fun and teach at the same time as letter recognition (the two go hand in hand). Put some shaving cream on the table and write and draw in it together. Of course, you will be writing his letter while he is drawing, but say Hey look Michael, I made your M! Let's see if you can make it too! Also, be sure he has access to plenty of writing tools and materials such as paper, pens, pencils, crayons, etc. Sit with him and let him draw and "write" while you make your grocery list or sign greeting cards. Tell him Look, I wrote my name on my list! Lets write your name on the picture you drew! Encourage him to make his own first letter, if that's all he's ready to make, then you help him hand-over-hand to write the rest of his name. If you are playing outside, use little sticks to make his name, or write his name in the dirt or sand. Encourage him to try it too. If you are cooking dinner, give him some rice or flour on a cookie sheet or plate and encourage him to write in it while you watch him and cook! These are fun writing strategies and they appeal to most kids like a game. When he is confident in recognizing and making his first letter, go on the second, and so on.

Just a tip for you, if he is recognizing his name as a unit, that's great, but he may not know the letters individually, which makes it difficult for him to write his name. What he sees when he recognizes the name is a group of lines and shapes that he knows to be his name, but it represents a pretty complex task to him to show him that group and ask him to make it. That's why teaching him the individual letters one at a time may be quicker and more successful for him. Once he starts recognizing and writing "his" letters, the rest of the letters will come more quickly for him. Good luck to you, and try to have fun with this! It's amazing and fun to watch the lights come on as children start to write!

Casey Said:

I am trying to teach a 10 year old child to write in cursive, is there a font that might help?

We Answered:

abcteach.com has some great tools you can try.

http://www.abcteach.com/directory/basics…

You might also want to start on very big lined paper and work your way down to a smaller normal sized lined paper.

Kristina Said:

How do one teach a brain damage child to write her name from left to write and not from right to left?

We Answered:

Maybe you don't... If she can write her name in a readable fashion, who are you to say she is doing it wrong? It would be similar (but much harder) than trying to teach all the left handers to write right handed - not what their brain is telling them to do or how their body operates. I know it is important to the english language to do this kind of stuff from left to right, so that reading is easier taught, but other cultures read and write from right to left - is that incorrect too? Since she has a brain injury, just be glad she has learned to write her name!

Tara Said:

How do I teach a right handed child to write, when I am left handed?

We Answered:

show lefty

Kirk Said:

Is there any materials you recommend on how to teach a child to write?

We Answered:

Here are 2 inexpensive handwriting programs , they are both very good !

http://www.avko.org/332.html


http://www.hwtears.com/

Sonia Said:

How do I teach my child to write?

We Answered:

Talk to your school's Occupational Therapist regarding lefties pencil grips, and writing skills.

Review your coursework child development books... she may have a slight delay in fine motor skills, and not quite be ready. Don't push too hard... you don't want her to hate writing!

Also, check these sites.

http://briem.ismennt.is/4/4.1.3a/4.1.3.4…

http://www.anythingleft-handed.co.uk/aca…

http://www.abcteach.com/directory/basics…

http://www.zaner-bloser.com/html/HWsuppo…

http://www.handwritinghelpforkids.com/ex…

Lillie Said:

Best way to teach a child to write his name?

We Answered:

Can he hold a pencil or pen in an orthodox way? If he can’t, then don’t teach him yet. It will only teach him bad writing habits.

If he cannot properly hold a pencil, help him gain some hand strength. To help him get some hand strength, have him use toys such as Lego's, play dough, or do things like scrub potatoes or windows with a little brush. He can also trace him name in a dish or cornmeal or sand (limits frustration).

If he is ready, make sure you have him learn to write him name starting off with an upper-case first letter, followed by lower-case letters. He will be expected to know it this way in kindergarten. You can write his name several times with a yellow marker for him to trace. You can also write him name on a piece of cardboard and have him use tracing paper to trace it. Remember to keep it fun!

It's more important that he can recite his first and last name and recognize his name. If he cannot, work on that first. Here's a link to some kindergarten readiness skills. Good luck!
http://www.srvusd.k12.ca.us/schools/REGI…