The Kindergarten students are enjoying their writing journals! They are becoming more independent as they practice their skills. Please see the article below, which explains writing milestones for this age and what parents can do to encourage their young writer at home.
Kindergartner Writing Milestones
Your kindergartner is beginning to realize that he is a writer. Many kindergartners love to write, and they naturally weave writing activities into their play. They pretend to be a waiter writing down customers’ orders on a notepad and create signs for a “post office.” While not all kindergartners write lengthy stories, most can draw a picture and write a one-word label for their picture. When your kindergartner sees himself as a writer, he is more likely to practice.
Kindergartners use invented spelling. Kindergartners use what they know about letters and sounds to write messages using “invented spelling,” or spelling words by the way they sound. By learning to “stretch out” the words to help them hear individual sounds, kindergartners can label a picture. Your child may write “BR” for “bear” or “I MAD MI BD” for “I made my bed.” Kindergartners generally use mostly consonants in their writing, as vowel sounds are harder for them to discriminate from one another. Using invented spelling actually helps your child practice the letter-sound relationships she needs for reading.
Kindergartners can write some words the “right” way. In addition to writing words according to the sounds they hear, kindergartners are developing a bank of words that they write frequently and can spell the “right” way. These words might include their own names and names of friends and family members. Writing these words over and over the correct way will help your child be able to read them too.
Kindergartners can read what they have written. Although you may have difficulty deciphering the writing of your kindergartner, he can most likely read the message he has written. In school, many kindergartners take pride in sharing their writing in front of the class. Many classrooms have special writing celebrations or “author’s chair” times set aside for children to share their work. Not all children like to share their writing, so it is perfectly acceptable for a child to “pass” on sharing.
Encouraging Your Kindergartner
- Encourage your child to express ideas and emotions by writing them down. Offer your help when she needs it. A birthday card, a letter, and even a grocery list are all ways of communicating thoughts and emotions. When you show your child how useful and necessary writing is in many different situations, you encourage her to use writing to both imagine and communicate.
- Don’t worry about correct spelling. Your kindergartner is just beginning to learn about the relationship between letters and sounds. At this age, children generally know how to spell some common words correctly, such as "go" and "love," but they "invent spell" most words, using their knowledge of letter sounds to record what they hear. Celebrate your child’s first attempts at spelling! The kindergartner who spells "Elephant" as "LFNT" is thinking carefully about sounds and letters.
- Encourage your child to read her own writing. Many kindergartners are proud to read their work to a caring adult. Although parents are not always able to decipher their kindergartner’s writing, children are generally able to "read" their writing based on the letters they wrote and their memory of what they intended to write. You can compliment and encourage your child for reading his own writing by saying, "I like how you used such interesting words." Not all children like to read their writing, however, so be sensitive to your child’s desire to keep his writing private if he likes.
- Provide a wide variety of pens and papers. Children are motivated to write more often if a variety of materials with which to experiment is handy. Markers, colored pencils, sidewalk chalk, glitter pens, neon pens on black paper, chalk and easel, colored paper, and old greeting cards are all appealing writing materials for 5-year-olds. They also enjoy keeping their materials in a special box or drawer.
- Show your child how YOU write. One of the most important ways to help your kindergartner develop as a writer is by writing yourself and talking about the process with your child. As you address an envelope, you might explain why you are writing the name and address of the recipient on the front of the letter. Write grocery lists by saying the items aloud and then writing them. You can even enlist your child’s help in figuring out the first letter to write in "bananas" and "milk" as you make the grocery list together.
Kindergartners use invented spelling. Kindergartners use what they know about letters and sounds to write messages using “invented spelling,” or spelling words by the way they sound. By learning to “stretch out” the words to help them hear individual sounds, kindergartners can label a picture. Your child may write “BR” for “bear” or “I MAD MI BD” for “I made my bed.” Kindergartners generally use mostly consonants in their writing, as vowel sounds are harder for them to discriminate from one another. Using invented spelling actually helps your child practice the letter-sound relationships she needs for reading.
Kindergartners can write some words the “right” way. In addition to writing words according to the sounds they hear, kindergartners are developing a bank of words that they write frequently and can spell the “right” way. These words might include their own names and names of friends and family members. Writing these words over and over the correct way will help your child be able to read them too.
Kindergartners can read what they have written. Although you may have difficulty deciphering the writing of your kindergartner, he can most likely read the message he has written. In school, many kindergartners take pride in sharing their writing in front of the class. Many classrooms have special writing celebrations or “author’s chair” times set aside for children to share their work. Not all children like to share their writing, so it is perfectly acceptable for a child to “pass” on sharing.
Encouraging Your Kindergartner
- Encourage your child to express ideas and emotions by writing them down. Offer your help when she needs it. A birthday card, a letter, and even a grocery list are all ways of communicating thoughts and emotions. When you show your child how useful and necessary writing is in many different situations, you encourage her to use writing to both imagine and communicate.
- Don’t worry about correct spelling. Your kindergartner is just beginning to learn about the relationship between letters and sounds. At this age, children generally know how to spell some common words correctly, such as "go" and "love," but they "invent spell" most words, using their knowledge of letter sounds to record what they hear. Celebrate your child’s first attempts at spelling! The kindergartner who spells "Elephant" as "LFNT" is thinking carefully about sounds and letters.
- Encourage your child to read her own writing. Many kindergartners are proud to read their work to a caring adult. Although parents are not always able to decipher their kindergartner’s writing, children are generally able to "read" their writing based on the letters they wrote and their memory of what they intended to write. You can compliment and encourage your child for reading his own writing by saying, "I like how you used such interesting words." Not all children like to read their writing, however, so be sensitive to your child’s desire to keep his writing private if he likes.
- Provide a wide variety of pens and papers. Children are motivated to write more often if a variety of materials with which to experiment is handy. Markers, colored pencils, sidewalk chalk, glitter pens, neon pens on black paper, chalk and easel, colored paper, and old greeting cards are all appealing writing materials for 5-year-olds. They also enjoy keeping their materials in a special box or drawer.
- Show your child how YOU write. One of the most important ways to help your kindergartner develop as a writer is by writing yourself and talking about the process with your child. As you address an envelope, you might explain why you are writing the name and address of the recipient on the front of the letter. Write grocery lists by saying the items aloud and then writing them. You can even enlist your child’s help in figuring out the first letter to write in "bananas" and "milk" as you make the grocery list together.
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