One of the most important things that we can teach our young children is how to write their names. It makes life SO much easier if children can write them when they enter kindergarten, so that the teacher will know which paper/picture/book/project belongs to which kid. We practice every day in preschool, but making customized sheets for each child is time-consuming, right? “Ain’t nobody got time for that!!” That’s why we’re so excited about these easy, editable Name Practice sheets.
Each morning when our students arrive, we ask them to sign in. Some of our kiddos are working on just the initial letter of their names, so that’s what’s on their sign-in sheets.
Some of the kiddos are ready to trace a conventional form of their name.
Others are ready to write the whole thing. Yes, we let our children write in capital letters. We follow their lead! Most times, they write their names based on the fact that they have memorized how to spell it orally (B-E-N, etc.). They are not writing it based on the model that we give them. That’s OKAY! It’s an important step in their writing development. You can read more about it HERE.
We like to keep all of their sign in sheets to reflect on the progress that they are making. At the beginning of the year, this student could write only some letter-like representations for his name. (And this practice sheet was probably not the best choice for him!)
But look at how well he is doing with his name, just a couple of months later. Amazing!
By the end of Pre-K, our students are able to write their first and last names conventionally because of the daily practice that they’ve had each morning. I love this sample. She wrote “Olivia S White.” Her middle name doesn’t start with an S. She wrote the “S” because you’re supposed to put a space between your first name and last name. I love these little ones!!
At the very end of Pre-K, we bind all of the pages together and send home a keepsake Name Portfolio. I am always so astonished and impressed at the progress that they make. (And the parents love it!)
It is so simple to type in your class list and print customized practice sheets for each child. Please give it a try! (These worksheets will only edit correctly if you open them in Adobe Reader. If you try to edit them in a default or generic PDF reader– often the one on your mac or iPad– the fonts will be wonky. Use Adobe!)
If you’re looking for even more ways to create customized name practice for your children, you’re going to love these:
Have a wonderful month playing and learning with your children.
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