Inspiring learners to write

You all know that my 4 year old started Reception this September. He has settled in really well and adjusted to his new routine, he no longer flops on the sofa when he gets home but runs around like a mad thing until bedtime. He is very keen to share all his new knowledge with his sister and the poor thing gets bossed around by her brother, he even tells her off when she does things her own way, rather than his.

One of the great benefits is that she wants to copy him. She tries to ‘write’ just like her brother, and she just wants to do the same things as him. My 4 year loves books and writing and we’ve been using the Penpals at Home Series to help reinforce his learning at school.

Handwriting is such an important skill that it is vital that parents support children in learning the style they are using at school.     Cambridge University Press have recently launched the Penpals at Home Series which is aimed at children ages 3-5 years old. Penpals is the leading brand in UK primary schools for handwriting and this is the first time they have published books for parents to use with their children. This series comes with a free app, which helps bring the letters and patterns in the books to life.

The books teach early handwriting skills such as patterns and print letter formation, with added digital watermarking technology which adds a little bit of magic – the children can see and hear the patterns and letters come to life on the page. It also includes practical support for parents throughout.

My 4 year old has been working on a couple of pages each night. Both books are straightforward and he enjoys practising his writing then rubbing it off with a wet wipe. The books don’t come with a pen but we’ve been using a whiteboard marker which works perfectly. As you can see from the photo above my 2 year old has been using the books too and we’ve been amazed how good her pen control is already. We would recommend these books for home learning. The Penpals at Home Series is available on Amazon or through the Cambridge University Press site.