The Next Steps - Building on the Foundations

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Literacy Reading Writing Making marks At first children need plenty of time to explore and experiment making marks on paper with a variety of implements. Try pencils, chalk, wax crayons and felt tips. No formal instruction is needed at this stage. <strong>The</strong>se ‘marks’ and scribbles have real meaning for children so it is important to praise and value each attempt. Learning about writing Children learn about writing by noticing print and watching others write and draw. Activity ideas Point out bus or street signs and supermarket labels so that children come to realise that the funny squiggles all around them convey meaning. <strong>The</strong>y may even start to say “what does that say”? when they see print. Activities which help to strengthen fingers and develop the physical skills necessary for writing are important at this stage too, children can develop this strength through making models and rolling and cutting out shapes from play dough or pastry. Simple sewing cards can be made using old birthday or Christmas cards. Punch holes around the edge and let children sew around them using wool or laces.
Recipe for making playdough 1 cup of salt 2 cups of flour 2 cups of water 2 tsp cream of tartar 2 tsp oil Few drops of food colouring Cook on a medium heat, stirring always. Remove when mixture leaves the sides of the pan. Knead well. Store in an airtight containers. Using scissors is a fabulous way of developing fine-motor skills together with hand-eye coordination, try using scissors to cut out pictures from old catalogues, magazines or cards and glue or paste the resulting shapes on to paper. Whilst these muscles are developing a good way of practicing is with play dough – it’s much easier. Holding the pencil <strong>The</strong>re are lots of ways to practice mark making: Make shapes or patterns in shallow trays or dry sand or with paint using fingers. Use wide brushes to make pictures with water Try starting with wider objects such as thick colouring pencils, these are easier to hold! Patterns and lines Before learning to write letters, children can benefit from drawing patterns and lines across paper. Every opportunity should be made available for children to experience the marks that they can make so that they can develop their emergent writing. Before going shopping why not encourage your child to make their mark with the shopping list. Names Children are interested in any idea using their name. Try making a name card for your child and use it to encourage name and letter recognition. At first encourage him or her to trace over the letters using the index finger. Use letter sounds. Let your child make their name using magnetic letters. Play matching or sorting games using sets of alphabet cards.
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Page 5 and 6: Toilets and Washing In the lead up
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Page 11 and 12: Counting Rhymes Why not recite coun
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The Next Steps - Building on the Foundations

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