When children are three years-old, they naturally develop beyond a pattern of circular scribbling in their drawing and begin to be able to form stronger and stronger circles. At first the circles are wobbly, then they become more symmetrical and round.
After children have mastered drawing circles, they are ready to begin to work on forming straight lines. Again, at first the lines are wobbly and they start at the bottom of the paper. But through development and practice, children can make strong, straight lines and they begin to remember to start their lines at the top. This becomes important for forming letters properly.
Handwriting Without Tears is a curricular program that addresses fine motor skills in developmentally appropriate ways. It is being used in the Lower School. Here in The Nest, we have adopted aspects of the program as well.
Over the course of the year, children will be introduced to sensory experiences that help them begin to confidently identify and draw the key components necessary to write capital letters: big lines, little lines, big curves, and little curves. You may have noticed your child’s clipboard filling with pages of lines.
Alongside our hard work, we have enjoyed three celebrations since we returned to school: Ms Postema and Teddy's birthdays, and the birth of Sierra's little sister.
