Writing skills are vital to your students’ success in school—and life! But it takes time to develop these skills, and it starts early. Think of it like working out—you can’t decide to be a weightlifter and automatically be able to lift your body weight. The same goes for your kids and their writing. The writing and pre-writing activities included here will help them work those writing muscles and prepare them for a lifetime of success. So, get ready to have some fun and help your kids get started on the path to writing by perusing our collection of the top 28 activities!
1. Squishy Sensory Bags
Let’s kick things off with a tactile delight! Fill plastic zipper bags with flour and water to make a great sensory activity without a bunch of mess! Using either cotton swabs or their fingers, your students can practice writing letters and numbers on the outside of their squishy bags.
Learn More: Learning 4 Kids
2. Shaving Cream Writing
While it is a little messier than the last activity, it is no less fun! Give your kids pieces of paper with simple words written on them, along with plates or trays covered in shaving cream. Then, have them use their fingers to copy these words by writing them in the shaving cream. Up the ante by having them use a tool to trace the words into the shaving whilst building muscle memory for holding pencils later on.
Learn More: Mess for Less
3. Writing in the Sand
This can be a fun indoor or outdoor activity, using either a sand tray or a sandbox to complete. Get the sand wet and let your kids use their fingers or sticks to write out the alphabet. For a fun twist, consider using food coloring to make colorful sand! If you don’t have sand on hand, use flour instead.
Learn More: Scholastic
4. Pre-Writing with Play Dough
If you are looking for fine motor activities to help with pre-writing, look no further. Help your kids practice both their fine motor and pre-writing skills by using play dough to guide their letter formation. They can simply use play dough to form letters.
Learn More: YouTube
5. Bubble Wrap Writing
What kid doesn’t love bubble wrap? After you draw your kids’ names on the bubble wrap, have them practice their fine motor skills by tracing the letters with their fingers; popping the bubbles as they go. What a fun and tactile way to practice letter shapes!
Learn More: Coffee Cups and Crayons
6. Beads and Pipe Cleaners
Another activity to strengthen your preschoolers’ hand-eye coordination is this activity, which will have them string beads onto pipe cleaners. They’ll use their pincer grip to hold the beads, which sets the foundation for them holding pencils and writing at a later learning stage.
Learn More: Teaching Mama
7. Pre-Writing Worksheets
The Kindergarten Connection offers many free printable worksheets for pre-writing. These fun sheets will help your students learn to grip the pencil while they practice the skill of tracing. Afterward, they can practice their fine motor skills even more by coloring in the characters (and staying within the lines) on the worksheets.
Learn More: The Kindergarten Connection
8. Chalk Writing
Decorating pavement with chalk drawings is a favorite activity of preschoolers. Little do they know they’ll be practicing their fine motor skills, which are the building blocks for their pre-writing skills, while doing so! Have your little ones focus on drawing shapes first, and then move on to forming letters and numbers!
Learn More: YouTube
9. Learning with Song
Another thing kids love is music and dancing. Give your littles plenty of opportunities to get up and move their bodies to really get them engaged in the learning process. This video will have them practicing their formation of straight and curved lines while bopping to a catchy beat!
Learn More: YouTube
10. Masking Tape Letters
Activities with scissors and tape always engage children, as they love to manipulate the scissors and the stickiness of the tape. Invite your kids to use a mirror, or blank wall, and masking tape to practice writing their names. The best part about this enjoyable activity? Easy clean-up!
Learn More: And Next Comes L
11. Sticker Line Up
This simple project will have your preschoolers practicing making shapes with stickers while at the same time practicing their pincer grip. First, draw lines and shapes on paper and invite your kids to place stickers on the paper to trace them with their fingers. Then, give your students the freedom to create their own shapes using the stickers.
Learn More: Busy Toddler
12. Mystical Dot-to-Dot Adventures
As your kids connect the dots on these printable worksheets, they’ll reveal “hidden” pictures that they can later color—all while refining their sequencing and fine motor skills.
Learn More: The Spruce Crafts
13. Dance of Colors with Rainbow Writing
Rainbow writing is an easy, colorful way to have your little ones practice tracing something multiple times—without getting bored! Give your kids these printable worksheets and ask them to trace the letters and shapes multiple times—using a different color each time. The more they trace, the better their artwork will look. What a great incentive to practice pre-writing skills!
Learn More: 4 Kinder Teachers
14. Stencil Magic
Use DIY (or purchased) stencils to get your kids practicing their tracing skills. Your little ones will enjoy watching shapes and letters “appear” on the page when they remove the stencil!
Learn More: YouTube
15. Highlighter Tracing Quest
It’s not just tracing; it’s a neon trip through space! Draw a simple spaceship—or anything else that will get your little ones interested—and invite them to trace over it with highlighters. The highlighters make it easy for them to see their progress in a colorful, engaging way!
Learn More: Days with Grey
16. Letter Mosaics with Tiny Objects
Get tactile with letter formation! As those little fingers glue beads, buttons, or other small objects onto paper letters, your kids will be improving their fine motor skills and practicing their letter recognition.
Learn More: OFamily Learning Together
17. Delicate Q-tip Artistry
Here’s a fun way to incorporate an arty touch into your writing lessons. Arrange these printable letters to form your students’ names and then have them fill in the dots with Q-tips! The soft touch, the vibrant spread of color, and the focus required will help you turn a simple tracing task into an exercise of patience and control.
Learn More: Teaching Mama
18. Windowpane Chronicles
Word walls are nothing new, but word windows can be a unique way to get your little ones looking (and thinking about) writing in a new way. Let your kids write or draw on windows with paint, or do it yourself to create a sensory tracing activity for little fingers. Either way, this is an excellent technique for using all the space in your room to your advantage!
Learn More: Preschool Inspirations
19. Feathered Pens of Yore
This isn’t just about writing; it’s time travel! Create simple “quills” with paper feathers on your own or with your class. These novel writing tools will undoubtedly get your little ones fired up about completing their writing tasks!
Learn More: Fun Littles
20. Chalkboard Aqua-Paint
This is ephemeral art at its finest. Get your preschoolers to “paint” letters and shapes with paint brushes that have been dipped in water! You can write letters and shapes in chalk for them to trace over or just let them write and draw whatever they’d like. And the best part? Any mess they make will dry up in no time!
Learn More: One Perfect Day
21. Fingerprint Alphabet Gallery
This activity fuses identity with learning. Let your kids “trace” letters and shapes with colorful fingerprints. They’ll be working on their fine motor skills and letter recognition while creating a piece of art that’s uniquely theirs!
Learn More: Happy Toddler Playtime
22. Wax Resist Revelations
This is magic on paper. Have your kids write letters or draw shapes with white crayons or wax candles. Then, they can use watercolors to paint over their piece of paper to reveal their artwork.
Learn More: Chalk Academy
23. Lace-Embroidered Alphabets
Give your littles sturdy paper letters with holes punched out and have them lace string or yarn however they’d like. With every loop and knot made, your kids will better their understanding of letter shapes, whilst practicing their motor skills and creating their own work of art!
Learn More: Gift of Curiosity
24. Animalistic Alphabet
Here, the wild meets the written word. These simple worksheets feature cute cartoon animals along with traceable letters. As your kids are practicing their pre-writing skills, every animal associated with a letter also becomes a mnemonic, helping to embed the letter in memory through its associations.
Learn More: South African Homeschool Mum
25. Ice-Paint Epics
On those sunny days, the chilly touch of ice-paints becomes a refreshing retreat. This clever activity lets your kids practice their writing or painting using something new—ice! Freeze colored water with popsicle stick handles and give them to your students as novel paintbrushes.
Learn More: The Best Ideas for Kids
26. Pasta Penmanship
Cooked spaghetti becomes another new writing medium in this easy activity. Write your kids’ names on paper and cover it with plastic sheet protectors. Hand around some cooled, cooked spaghetti, and have them manipulate the strands to form their names! The novelty of playing with their food is sure to get your students excited about improving their fine motor skills.
Learn More: Hands On As We Grow
27. Leafy Letters
This activity truly is nature’s alphabet personified. Get outside with your kids as they work on their motor skills and letter recognition! Using fallen leaves, have your students create letters or shapes. You can create chalk patterns for them to follow or let them go freehand once they have the hang of things.
Learn More: Happy Toddler Playtime
28. Cookie Cutter Calligraphy
Tracing cookie cutters is an easy way to help your kids acquire the fine motor skills they’ll need for writing. Distribute cookie cutters, paper, and crayons or pencils to your students and have them get to work- tracing away.
Learn More: The OT Toolbox
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