Letter Practice
River isn't fond of handwriting. He comes by it honestly, it's been a battle with all the boys. When Kaden was five and learning to write his name he told me he didn't have to learn to write because his children would write everything for him (Kaden's handwriting remains "challenging" ... those children of his have their work cut out for them).
To practice handwriting I tossed some paint in a gallon ziploc bag and sealed it with tape. I mixed two colors for interest, but even after they mixed together it was great fun. This gave him an erasable surface to practice with his fingers on. And, mostly, it's just plain fun to play with.
I set a handwriting chart next to him and let him go.
He loved it, but I quickly realized (1) there was too much paint in the bag (a very small amount is all that's needed, maybe two tablespoons), and (2) the bag was slipping around. I removed a bunch of paint and taped the bag to a cookie sheet. Much better.
After a while I thought to put a white sheet of paper under the bag, so he could better see his end results. Even better.
The bigger kids had more fun imprinting their hands and faces in the bagged paint. Because bigger kids are like that. I used to make these when I had the daycare to practice counter-clockwise circles and letters.
To recap: Our best concoction was a tablespoon or two of paint in a gallon bag, taped to a cookie sheet or other large enough flat surface, with white paper underneath.
1 Comment
That's a brilliant idea! I'll have to remember that one for my nephew. He's 2, though he might find it fun to play with now...
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