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Pretend Area:

- Currently, our "store" is set up as a "Pumpkin Patch" so it can either be just selling stuff, or I can create a little "notepad" they can take orders on or can give out receipts on. I try to change our store to align seasonally.

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(1) We will put fall/autumn-themed words into the writing center.

(2) In the kitchen area, we can add a weekly meal list w/dry erase markers.

(3) Sensory bin (Halloween-themed) find and trace letters.

-Melanie (Franklin)

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How can children learn writing in dramatic play?

grocery lists

thank you notes

label community buildings/maps

label foods for grocery store

label toys/items in dramatic play

menus for restaurants

write prescriptions (doctor's office)

steps to wash hands/brush teeth

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tie writing to community helpers- police officer dress up (write tickets), grocery lists, restaurant worker dress up (writes down food orders), post office worker (write cards and deliver them)

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1. restaurant - menu writing + draw

2. post office - write, draw letters

3. library - write, draw books

4. auto shop - repair ticket, invoice

5. pumpkin patch - write /draw about your pumpkin - life cycle

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themed dramatic play to pumpkin patch: kids pretend write orders for food that we have. Goes along with harvest festival portion of unit 3-Hoover. (I do not change every week)

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Re: Benchmark/Ready to Advance Consumeables:

- Use what works, skip what doesn't!

- Accessible, potential activity for early finishers?

- Send home as extra practice on weekend. Give ideas on how families can adapt it to meet the needs/levels of their child.

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dot markers, finger painting, pointer finger using to outline, using for students at various levels to help set them up for success.

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shaving cream, legos, tweezers

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Tear paper, practice cutting different types of lines before moving on to other cutting activities, poms with tweezers or other items, poking dotted lines with push pins, whole punching, play-doh, tracing, lacing...

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Writing Readiness Pre Writing Skills Book - Dry-Erase

155 Pre-Writing Skills Activities

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Handwriting Club Resources

LOTS of resources for TK Families :)

Morning Writing Work:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/My-Prewriting-Playbook-An-Active-Learning-Journal-Printable-7730119

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Have you ever wondered how our hand develops? How it is able to do so many things?

Development of the hand

Our hands actually start out as little blobs that develop little bone like cartilage structures that later form our fingers. At birth we have 19 bones in total in each hand with fingers, and no wrist bones. Initially these bones have spaces between them and as we grow and develop our hands more, these spaces decrease.

As a newborn, the grasp reflex is so strong that it keeps the hand in a fist when asleep. When babies are awake, the baby might bat hands in the air and even use rotation movements while looking at something. This is the foundation for the development of eye-hand coordination. At this stage the baby often brings their hands together in the middle of their bodies which helps the baby to develop awareness that there are two sides to the body. This awareness later develops into 'bilateral integration' which allows someone to use both sides of the body at the same time.

Around 3-4 months the baby starts to push on his/her hands to lift the head and upper trunk during tummy time. This helps to strengthen the shoulders and hands, and helps with the process of opening the hand, forming arches and integrating the grasp reflex.

Reciprocal crawling further strengthens these muscles and has many benefits including cognitive benefits. By 5 months, the baby is so motivated to interact with the environment that s/he voluntarily opens and closes his/her hand to hold objects, although can be uncoordinated when releasing objects.

With practice and by manipulating different objects, different grasps and pinches develop which makes manipulating objects easier. The more the hands manipulate a variety of objects, the more sensory input they receive and the more refined these grasps and pinches become.

Finally, we have hands that can open and close buttons during dressing, control cutlery during mealtimes, open lunchboxes and other packages, and even write letters, numbers, words, sentences and even complex stories.

The development of the hand is fascinating and there is so much more to learn.

Feel free to reach out for any help with hand function for you or your little one with one of our Occupational Therapists here at Hanrahan Health. Contact us via our website, or via email at admin@hanrahanhealth.com.au.

References:

Visser, M., Nel, M., Vries, J.D., Klopper, E., Olën, K., & Coller, J.M. (2014). In-hand manipulation of children aged four and five-years-old: translation, rotation and shift movements, in Bloemfontein. South African Journal of Occupational Therapy, 44, 22-28. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/In-hand-manipulation-of-children-aged-four-and-and-Visser-Nel/6beadff01ca41f88eee9e11111e6ca533ca7ddc6

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How does our hand develop? - Hanrahan Health - Therapy Services

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Have you ever wondered how our hand develops? How it is able to do so many things? Our hands actually start out as little blobs that develop little bone like cartilage structures that later form our fingers. At birth we have 19 bones in total in each hand with fingers, and no wrist bones.

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lacing cards, building letters with beads, grabbing pom pots with giants tweezers, peeling stickers, poking letters with push pins, making letters with playdoh, plus plus blocks, brain flakes