Routine · Letters
Handwriting: talk it, trace it, write it
Teach the strokes of a letter with spoken directions, tracing, copying and writing from memory.
- Time
- 3 to 6 minutes
- Skill
- Letters
- In a session plan
- New lesson
When to use it
When a letter is new, or when a student forms a letter from the bottom up or in pieces.
Materials
- Lined paper or a whiteboard
- A model of the letter with numbered starting points
Steps
Shown with example words: spelling m.
Get ready
Show where the letter starts and which lines it touches.
I do
Write the letter large while saying each stroke in a few words, the same words every time.
Say: Start at the top. Down. Back up, over and down. That is m.
We do
The student traces your model while you both say the stroke words. Then they write it in the air with a straight arm.
You do
The student copies the letter three times beside your model, saying the stroke words quietly.
Student: Writes and says the strokes.
Cover the model. The student writes the letter from memory and says its sound.
Check
Ask the student to circle the best one and tell you why it is the best.
If the student...
Starts at the bottom or in the wrong place.
Put a dot where the letter starts. Say the stroke words as you write it once more, then guide the student's hand through it. Let them write it alone from the dot.
Say: Every time, we start here, at the dot.
Tips
- Say the sound each time the letter is written. Writing is a strong way to tie the sound to the shape.
- One to one, watch the formation, not just the finished letter. A good-looking letter can be made the wrong way.
Example words
- Spelling
- m
Original routines written by Literacy Trail. In the app, every routine is filled with your student's lesson.
Related routines
- Meet the letter: name and shapeIntroduce a letter by its name and the look of its capital and small forms.3 to 5 minutes · New lesson
- Letter sound with a picture keywordLink a letter to its sound through a picture word that begins with that sound.4 to 7 minutes · New lesson
- Introduce a new sound-spellingTeach a new spelling for a sound: hear it, see it, say it, write it, then read words with it.6 to 10 minutes · New lesson
- Quick letter-sound drillFlash known letters for their sounds at a brisk pace, with fast fixes.2 to 3 minutes · Review
Have this routine filled in for every lesson
In Literacy Trail, the session plan picks a routine for each block and fills it with the words, sounds and sentence from your student's lesson. Every plan starts with a 15-day free trial.