Teaching little learners to write their own name is one of the basic skills parents, preschool and kindergarten teachers alike are always looking for ways to practice. There are so many name activities out there to help little ones learn their own name. But name tracing is one of the easiest ways to get learners writing their name independently.
Before Learning to Write
Before writing their own name my learners sing their name. You can find my name song template in my Name Activities pack. We sing our name, begin the school year with Star Student of the Day and form our names in different ways.
One learners know the letters and are able to spell their name it is time to write. This can be done one of three different ways.
Steps to Name Writing
There are different stages for learners to write their names. Not every learner is at the same stage when they enter your classroom. Or if you are a parent practicing at home your three year old may be at a different level than your five year old.
Depending on your little ones’ abilities is where I begin our name writing practice.
Capital Letters
I know what some of you may say, “You have to teach them to write it the correct way.” To that I say, “I completely agree…when they are ready”.
Learning to write is a not a skill to take lightly. Some children are able to hold a pencil and write when they are toddlers. For others it is more challenging. That is why young learners should master writing with all capital letters first. Capital letters are easier to form especially with pencil grips. Fine motor skills are still being developed. By writing with all capitals first your are setting your young writers up for success.
Don’t get me wrong, their names are posted throughout the room written with a capital first followed by lowercase letters. But I want to make sure they are able to form the capital letters before we move on to the more difficult lowercase letters.
Capital then Lowercase
Now it is time to move on to the correct way to write a proper noun. This is where lowercase letters are introduced. Now that learners are able to form their name using all capital letters they will be able to add the lowercase letters.
Lowercase letters that are more challenging to form can be perfected during this time. They know how to spell their name. They know how to write their name with capitals. It is time to add in the lowercase.
Blank Lines
After learners are able to trace their name with both capitals and lowercase, it is time to set them free. Simply have learners write their name on blank lines to form the letters correctly.
To start this stage off, I like to have the top line continue to be tracing practice which allows for learners to get warmed up. This also provides a references that is right in front of them. This leads to indepenedn
Name Writing Practice
Having learners working on different stages of name writing at school or at home can seem overwhelming. As a teacher, my time is limited with prep time. I need something simple.
That is when I created my editable name practice page. I am able to change the name, how I want the letters formed, print a master copy of each and I’m done. Now I can just pull as I need them.
Welcome your students the first week of school with this FREE name writing practice by clicking the link below!
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