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Try a Fine-Motor Journal to Encourage Enjoyment of Writing

April 6, 2017 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

Most kids do not love learning to write by practicing letter formation. And the truth is, there are certain fine-motor skills that need to be there before kids can learn to write.

To make both getting ready to write and developing those physical skills a little more fun for kids and teachers/parents alike, why not try setting up a fine-motor journal for preschoolers?

This idea comes from Stay at Home Educator, and it involves making little books where the kids put in stickers and draw lines between the stickers or do other activities. They get the fine-motor work both of peeling the stickers and controlling a crayon without the pressure of making letters, and in the end they have a book to show for their efforts, which should also get them excited about later writing books with real letters and words.

Check out her post for all the details and more tips for teaching writing to little ones.

Read more: Tips for teaching writing in preschool | Visual report writing template | Rhyming peg board

[Photo: Stay at Home Educator.]

So why is tracing important for my toddler to learn and does it help with handwriting? Yes, it does, Learning to trace teaches your child fine motor skills. Tracing is not only limited to preschoolers, it is suitable for all development ages when learning to write, not matter what the age.

Tracing, when added to your child’s drawing time, helps polish those pre-writing abilities, establishing a solid basis for drawing and emerging writing. Highlights: Tracing helps young children strengthen their pre-writing abilities and lays the groundwork for drawing and writing letters and words.

Looking for more tracing worksheets and activities for your child? Check out these tracing articles.   If you are looking for some great worksheets check out these tracing workbooks on Amazon.

 

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Have you read?

Books to Read for Dia de Los Muertos

Explaining Dia de Los Muertos to kids can be difficult because most of us don’t generally talk about death or what happens when we die a lot with our kids. But Dia de los Muertos is actually a happy, not scary occasion that allows us to remember loved ones, share stories and come together as a community. 

While it is mostly celebrated by people of Mexican heritage, the day has become more well known thanks to movies and other media representations. And there are some great children’s books to help explain and allow you to celebrate the holiday if you want. 

Dia de Muertos by Jaque Jours, illustrated by Alejandra Ruiz (48 pages, hardcover, published 2025 by words & pictures, suggested retail price $14.99) tells the story of a family getting their ofrenda (altar for the dead) ready and how they remember people who have died through decorations, food and sharing stories. 

It covers the classic decorations and rituals of Dia de los Muertos including using cempasúchil (in English we call them marigolds) and papel picado (cut paper banners), pan de muerto and la catrina, the elaborately dressed, skull faced women that are a common site at Dia de los Muertos gatherings. 

The back of the book explores how the day is celebrated throughout Mexico as well as the meanings of different symbols. There’s a recipe for pan de muerto, a tutorial for making papel picado and tips for doing makeup to look like like la catrina/el catrin. 

Want to try more traditional foods? The Dia de Los Muertos Cookbook is a companion to The Dia de Los Muertos Story, both of which are by Andrea Jáuregui de la Torre and illustrated by Laura González (52 pages, hardcover paper over boards, published 2026 by becker & meyer kids!, suggested retail price $19.99). 

The book opens with some discussion of the meaning of Dia de los Muertos and why food is an important part of the day. The recipes included are easy enough for kids to make with minimal help, and all based on food memories from her childhood. 

There are recipes for hibiscus iced tea, Mexican corn and salsa, tortillas, molletes (open faced sandwiches with beans and cheese), jicama fries and sugar skulls to name a few.

Other activities in the book include papel picado, coffee filter marigolds, making your own playlist and making an ofrenda.

Together these books give young readers insight into this holiday that might be new or confusing to them, while also giving you a chance to get in the kitchen together and make your own Dia de los Muertos memories. 

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