Before a child can write their first words, there’s a whole set of skills they need to develop. These are called pre-writing skills. They provide the foundation for handwriting and are just as important as learning the alphabet.
What are pre-writing skills?
They are the small movements, strength, and coordination needed before a child is ready to write letters or numbers. These include pencil grasp, drawing, colouring, copying shapes, and eventually writing. These skills help children control a pencil with smooth wrist movements, which makes handwriting clearer and less tiring.
Why are they important?
Strong pre-writing skills help children:
- Develop better pencil control for neat handwriting
- Write with less effort and fatigue
- Express their ideas on paper with confidence
- Build fine motor abilities needed for everyday life (using cutlery, tying shoelaces, buttoning clothes)
Studies show that early focus on pre-writing activities (e.g., scribbling, drawing, tracing) supports handwriting development and overall school readiness.
Foundations for pre-writing
To be ready for writing, children build on these early foundational skills:
- Postural control: Strong core and shoulder muscles to keep arms and hands steady
- Hand strength and dexterity: Finger and hand muscles to grip and move a pencil
- Bilateral coordination: Using both hands together, such as holding paper with one hand while drawing with the other
- Visual-motor skills: Linking what they see with how their hand moves
- Spatial awareness: Understanding where to place marks on a page and how shapes and lines relate
Pre-writing shapes by age
Pre-writing shapes are the building blocks for letters. They involve movements such as horizontal, vertical, and diagonal lines, as well as curves. Simple shapes like crosses (+) and X’s help children learn how to intersect lines, while squares and triangles teach them to create corners. Mastering these skills is an important developmental step before forming letters.
Children typically develop pre-writing shapes in stages:
How to help develop these skills
Building pre-writing skills can be fun and part of everyday play. Try:
- Playing with playdough, putty, or clay for hand strength
- Threading beads, building lego, using tweezers for finger control
- Big drawing movements with chalk, crayon, or paint for arm and shoulder development
- Tracing, dot-to-dot, or simple mazes for hand-eye coordination
- Cutting with child-safe scissors for control and precision
When to seek support
All children develop at their own pace, but extra support may help if your child:
- Struggles to hold a pencil or avoids drawing/writing
- Tires quickly during writing tasks
- Has trouble with fine motor tasks like cutting, drawing, or using cutlery
- Finds it difficult to copy shapes, patterns, or letters
Occupational therapists can assess the underlying motor, sensory, and perceptual skills that affect writing. They then create targeted strategies to help children strengthen these areas and feel confident in their handwriting.
Conclusion
Pre-writing skills may look simple, but they are the stepping stones to confident handwriting and learning. Supporting these foundations through fun, everyday activities builds both skill and confidence as children start school. If you have any questions or concerns, our occupational therapists at Ohana Therapy are here to guide and support you and your child every step of the way.
References
Grisham-Brown, J., Ridgley, R., Pretti-Frontczak, K., Litt, C., & Nielsen, A. (2006). Promoting positive learning outcomes for young children in inclusive classrooms: A preliminary study of children’s progress toward pre-writing standards. Journal of Early and Intensive Behavior Intervention, 3(1), 171-183. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0100329
K. Kalaichandran. (2024). Role of Occupational Therapy in Prewriting Skills for Children with Special Need: A Clinical Study. European Modern Studies Journal, 7(6), 172-178. https://doi.org/10.59573/emsj.7(6).2023.17
Neumann, M. M. & Neumann, D. L. (2009). More than Just Storybooks: Promoting Emergent Literacy Skills in the Home. Childhood Education, 85 (4), 257-259. https://doi.org/10.1080/00094056.2009.10523093
Sharma, N. (2024). Comparing the Pre-writing Skills of Diplegic Cerebral Palsy Children of Those of Normal Children. Cureus, 16(5), e61352. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.61352
