Need to revive flagging interest in your writing table? Wanting to make the most of this precious learning space? Here are 21 simple ways to get young children interested in playful learning about letters and writing (click through each link for more details).
1. Add a collection of Alphabet Rocks, perfect for preschoolers.
2. Or a set of these fabulous Yarn Wrapped Stick Letters. From 3 Squeezes.
3. Sight Word Rocks are great for those who have started to read and who are willing to have a go at writing independently. These are via The Imagination Tree.
4. Alphabet Stickers are great for pre-writers who are demonstrating interest in letter shapes and sounds and who are role playing at writing.
5. Letter Stamps are lots of fun for children of all ages. They can be used with ink pads on paper or pressed into playdough or clay.
6. Scrabble Letters are also great for matching letters and forming words.
7. Add an Alphabet Box, like the one shown above from Teaching 2 and 3 Year Olds. Click through for more information about how they use it in their preschool.
8. Older children will find a Word Bank handy. Via Zella Said Purple.
9. A Word Collection Jar can be useful for kickstarting story writing ideas. From Imagination Soup.
10. A Mail Box is a fabulous way to inspire young children to have a go with writing and gives older children a fun and meaningful purpose for writing. Via We Live We Learn.
11. Add Letter Writing Sets like these two free printable versions from Picklebums – Set 1 and Set 2.
12. Post-It Notes come in lots of fun colours and shapes, making them a great addition to any writing table. Via My Little Bookcase.
13. Inspire writing with Letters To and From the Children’s Favourite Characters.
14. Leaves and Shiny Pens invite children to write letters to the fairies hiding in your garden. Via My Little Bookcase.
15. Add pads of Blank Birthday Party Invitations.
16. Fold and staple some blank paper pages to make Book Blanks for story writing.
17. Clipboards are a great way to encourage children to take their writing to wherever they need it.
18. Add a large Whiteboard or small, individual whiteboards. From Creative Star Learning Company.
19. Print or Photocopy Maps of your local area. Via Picklebums.
20. New and interesting Writing Materials can encourage children too – my girls love crayon rocks and slick stix.
21. Add a set of Geometry Tools for children to explore. From Picklebums.
What are your favourite ways to encourage children to explore writing playfully?
Read more of Christie's adventures at https://childhood101.com.
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