how to teach dd 4 to write

[ginodacampoismydh]

dd is 4.7 and read quite well and is progressing well with reading, she is able to sound out if she does not know the word.

however she cannot write at all , not even her name. alone this is not a worry as I see she is young and will get there but im surprised her writing is much slower to progress than her writing. can it be normal for them not to come along at a similar pace or could this indicate a sn or dyslexia?

she is left handed and writes on the page from right to left and all her letters are back to front upside down or just not legible at all. does it take left handed children longer to grasp?

Also wanted any pointers as to how to help her progress with her writing, as she is ademant with me her writing is correct and so she just cant grasp that the words she has written look different.

[ginodacampoismydh]

writing much slower to progress than reading...sorry typo.

[IndigoBell]

You are saying she can write - she just doesn't form her letters correctly?

i.e., she has no problem holding her pencil or making marks on paper?

At 4.7 writing letters back to front would not be considered a sign of dyslexia, and would indeed be very normal.

I think in the next few months you will see lots of improvement without any special extra help.

[crazygracieuk]

In my experience most children read better than they write. I noticed a huge leap in handwriting at Y2/3 ish which makes me feel that there must be a physical development that happens at that age. It can be harder for left handers to learn to write for reasons like their arm hiding what they have just written but I can't remember what the exact tips for helping them are because my leftie is in Y5 so has obviously been writing a few years. Writing backwards, mirror writing or confusing letters like b and d is a stage that many children go through.

My ds is 4.3 and has just learned to write his name- Harry . I did notice that most children in nursery who could sign their name had "easier" names eg. Tom or Max rather than Thomas or Catherine. His teacher mentioned that when they write at school the teacher reminds children to write left to write and I know that they are currently doing lots of work on letter formation.

[ginodacampoismydh]

thanks indigobell, my main worry was the difference in reading and writting. teacher picked up on it and said at parents evening its surprising she cant write her name comparing how well she reads and may be something to keep an eye on but to see how it develops over next few terms.

I must say i hadnt picked up on it untill then but I have noticed it more so over the past few weeks myself.

i find it hard to help her improve as she gets upset with me trying to show and help her. so i tend to let her get on with it and not correct her but not sure if this is the right way to support her.

[ginodacampoismydh]

thanks crazy i will ask her teacher about tips for left handed

[IndigoBell]

If teacher is worried (which she isn't) - then you should be.

Most important thing now is that she is taught how to form her letters correctly. But it will all come in time...

And she is taught how to position her paper for a left hander.

[IndigoBell]

And if in a few months her letter formation is not improving, my first thought would be visual perception problems rather than dyslexia.

[ginodacampoismydh]

so would a visual perception problem be picked up by an optician or is it more of a cognitive thing?

[IndigoBell]

A visual perception problem would definitely not be picked up by an optician.

Yes it's more of a cognitive thing, and yes it can be fixed / improved.

So really, really don't worry now. If in a few months you are concerned than start a new thread....

I think it's unlikely you won't have noticed vast improvements in a few months time.

[wetandwindy]

Could you go back to the basics and make it different by practising the letters in a flour/foam tray writing some CVC words and then on an upright blackboard/whiteboard.

I do think it is key to form the letters correctly or it all starts to get mixed up as they write more.It is,however, perfectly normal IMO to do letters back to front at this age.

My dd did lots of emergent writing in reception and her letters were all over the place in year 1 and her writing behind her reading.We had to do a bit of work at home on this with her so I have been determined with my ds he will learn the letters correctly from the start rather than having to corect him later.

I've being doing the above in short bursts with him and also say the action as he writes the letter so up,down over the hill etc.I always remind him to start on the left so he won't run out of room when writing his name for instance.He enjoys doing these things.

Have a look at this thread for some other ideas.

[ginodacampoismydh]

thanks indigobell im not worried just interested in how to help her improve and what to make sure I am able to pick up any problems in the future. my spelling is not great either with out using the pc.

I think I will just leave her to it for a while as i dont want to make her stress as she is getting very annoyed with me showing her left to right etc. so ill just let her have pen and paper and not intervene. her teacher is great and she seems to respond well with her.

[ginodacampoismydh]

just seen your post wetandwindy. I do try these things but she gets very angry with me intervening, she is like this alot with me she wont let me help her with swimming etc but does respond well to her instructor. i think she likes to think she is able to learn indipendantly from me.

[wetandwindy]

My dc are like this too hence me just ploughing in with ds from the start.

I'd let her be until later then and see how she is in year 1.My dd improved leaps and bounds as she got older and writes very well now so don't worry.If school are concerned they will intervene.She sounds quite normal for a reception child.
Have you had an eye test?

[ginodacampoismydh]

she has not had an eye test as she has nt shown any other signs of strain ing or headaches etc.

she is very strong willed and i dont want to turn it into an issue for her she will happily read to me.

but i have noticed that with the non word books from school she gets bored easily and rather than make up a story she will just list what she sees in the picture and again jumps all over the pages rather than begining with the right to left. i let her do this as she will read words from her own books.

[ginodacampoismydh]

sorry left to right

[wetandwindy]

Have an eye test anyway as she should have one as should all children (they are free on the NHS).
It is very good she is doing well with her reading.I'm sure her writing will start to come together.

[ginodacampoismydh]

i will get her an eye test. thanks for advice.

[CecilyP]

ginodacampoismydh, it is absolutely normal for reading and writing not to come along at a similar pace for these little ones and does not indicate a sn or dyslexia, only imaturity. When we started school at 5, reading and writing were probably more in sync but with the younger starting age, it is very common for reading to forge ahead and for writing to lag behind a bit (or even a lot).

I would encourage her to do other pencil and paper activities - drawing, colouring, dot to dots - anything she might enjoy and not push the writing. It will come in time.