Pre-writing Focus

This week we are enjoying some more winter themed fun and will also be exploring writing foundations and the importance of focusing on the body first!

We are so excited to share with you some wonderful guidance from Physiotherapist Julia Lee-Sylvester this week who is devoted to paediatrics as a special interest and passion.

“All learning begins with the body. It has to. It’s our point of reference – our own personal, portable true north, so to speak. And for children, it’s even more so because the body is the brain’s first teacher. And the lesson plan is movement.” – A Moving Child is a Learning Child (Gill Connell and Cheryl McCarthy)

Watering Whole understands the importance of free play and exploration as well as gross motor and fine motor work for each child’s physical development.

Did you know that before a child can learn to successfully write first they must acquire a number of pre-writing skills?

These pre-writng-skills have been so beautifully outlined in these wonderful graphics below created by Julia:

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Little ones often find it easier and more fun to write, draw or paint on a vertical surface. Before they decide to draw on your precious walls, you can encourage activities like the one below or even drawing with washable markers on the sliding door.

I love this activity for toddlers but it even has benefits for school going children!
✔️ Writing on a vertical surface is great for wrist, elbow and shoulder strength, midline crossing, visual attention, hand-eye coordination and postural control.
✔️ Spray bottle: hand and finger strengthening and visual attention.
✔️ Cleaning vertical surface with scrunched up newspaper, sponge or cloth: hand, forearm and shoulder strengthening, proprioceptive input into the shoulder joint, midline crossing and hand-eye coordination.

These abilities are all needed later for fine motor skills like pencil grip, scissor cutting, sitting upright at a desk and even ball skills ⚽️ . .