What is the Fun Strokes Pre-writing Program?
Imagine baking a cake without first learning how to use measuring cups properly. Without the precise ingredients, it’s highly unlikely your confection will match the photo in the cookbook. It’s the same way with handwriting. You can’t form the letter “A” correctly without precise diagonal and horizontal lines, yet today’s children are often taught to write letters before mastering the prerequisites. Pre-writing strokes—lines, circles, and other simple shapes—form the foundation for letters, numbers, and illustrations. If taught to write without this critical foundation, children can develop bad habits, hard-to-read handwriting, and a distaste for writing—all of which can interfere with academic success. Pre-writing skills are the unsung hero to kindergarten success!
Fun Strokes is a readiness program that teaches children pre-writing strokes through playful and engaging activities. Children use magnets and drawing exercises to learn how to make simple lines and shapes—all while having fun! It’s a unique and entertaining way to equip young children with the crucial fine motor skills to achieve handwriting success in kindergarten and beyond.
How Does It Work?
Here’s a sneak peek into the magic of the Fun Strokes book and pre-writing magnets:
The journey begins as the book intricately illustrates and defines essential grasping and pre-writing skills tailored to match each child’s unique age. As you delve further, you’ll uncover a goldmine of insights into fine motor skill advancement, aiding you in pinpointing precisely where a child stands on the developmental timeline. Crafted with great detail, the book navigates you through the intricate steps of the pre-writing program, leaving no room for confusion. Picture this: kids engagingly observe and emulate a skilled adult, utilizing the magnets on a vertical surface (easel, whiteboard, or even your kitchen refrigerator). This ingenious technique not only aligns with natural developmental progressions but also amplifies the learning adventure, all the while harnessing the benefits of vertical practice. Enhancing the experience, the book provides meticulously crafted verbal prompts – guiding your young learners through correct stroke sequences with ease and efficacy. Establishing consistency is key, and these prompts, coupled with the magnetic magic, play a pivotal role in nurturing children’s growth.
Behold the magic of progress with the integrated paper and pencil workbook, meticulously designed to harmonize with developmental milestones. This pivotal workbook invites kids to embark on the next phase of growth – copying pre-writing strokes on a horizontal plane (like what they’ll typically encounter at school, working on desks and tables). And that’s not all! Witness your understanding expand with the inclusion of pre-assessment and post-assessment tools. The pre-assessment sheds light on a child’s developmental position, highlighting areas of focus. On the flip side, the post-assessment measures progress and unveils whether the child has forged the cornerstone of handwriting excellence – pre-writing strokes.
But wait, there’s more! The book’s bonus segment unveils an array of supplementary prewriting activities. These add a dash of fun while promoting fine motor development, ensuring your young learners embark on a journey teeming with growth and accomplishment. Embrace the future of pre-writing mastery with the Fun Strokes program– your companion to ensuring children’s path to handwriting readiness and success.
How does the Fun Strokes program benefit children?
The proof is in the pudding! Check out this before and after. The sample shown is the work of a 4-year-old preschool student.
Why is working on a vertical surface so important?
Working on a vertical surface benefits the child in so many ways:
- Develops strength and stability in the joints and muscles in the arm
- Encourages correct wrist position, which facilitates hand stabilization and correct pencil grasp
- Builds hand-eye coordination
- Builds core strength by engaging the muscles that connect our upper and lower body, which supports a good upright posture
- Provides sensory input by allowing for movement and the ability to change position while standing or kneeling to work
- Develops spatial awareness as directional terms like up, down, and across are easier to understand when they are in relation to our own body
- Encourages visual attention because the child is working at eye level, which can be very helpful for children who struggle with looking at what they are doing
- Encourages crossing the midline, which helps to build neural connections in the brain
Fun Strokes Pre-writing Magnets: Top Quality & Made in the USA
- Non-toxic
- Made in the USA
- Durable, will withstand years of use
- Heavy-duty (35 Mil)
- Dry erase surface can be used over and over
- Eye-catching vibrant colors
See Fun Strokes In Action!
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Fun Strokes Book & Magnet Pack
Testimonials
“Fun Strokes makes learning pre-writing strokes FUN! The innovative dry-erase magnets make it easy for students to draw on a vertical surface, facilitating an appropriate grasp pattern in a fun way. The images used in the program are familiar to students, motivating, and build the foundational skills for writing later in school. My students have had so much fun with the program they didn’t even realize that they were working! I can’t recommend Fun Strokes enough – check it out today!”
Dr. Laura Anderson, Pediatric Occupational Therapist
“The Fun Stokes program has worked wonders for my three-year-old grandson! After trying many different typical writing books, none of which seemed to be helping, I learned of the Fun Strokes book. This program emphasizes basic pre-writing skills, that my grandson was definitely missing, all in a very fun way. He actually enjoys Fun Strokes time! Fun Strokes is written in a way that makes it easy to teach. In just a short time my grandson has gone from just basically scribbling to being able to draw all of the age-appropriate strokes. He can even write several letters. We are so thankful we found this amazing program and can not recommend it enough!”
Tammy Stone, Grandmother
“Fun Strokes is hands down the best prewriting program EVER! It is SO much fun to use and the kids LOVE it! I have literally witnessed students who have such significant grasp pattern delays THRIVE when using Fun Strokes! Check it out! You won’t be disappointed!”
Ashley Viola, Pediatric Occupational Therapist
“Fun Strokes is a preschool multi-sensory approach to laying the groundwork of skills that are necessary to develop mature visual motor perceptual integration skills as children progress through higher school grades. It is essential to take the time to build those necessary skills during preschool years to avoid that frequent complaint that teachers, therapists and parents always hear “I hate writing”. Writing is a wonderful communication venue that all children should love. Fun Strokes provides a simple program that any adult can easily use with children at home or in school to give them that first love of developing good writing habits with hands on magnetic manipulatives. Begin wonderful early exploration writing development with Fun Strokes”.
Dr. Cynthia Normandia, Pediatric Occupational Therapist
Let’s get kids ready to write! Check out the full line of pre-writing products at The Fun Strokes Store.
See More Products From The Fun Strokes Program in Action!
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Fun Strokes Pre-writing Kits
Fun Strokes Playdough Mats
Shop The Fun Strokes Store!
Disclaimer:
Fun Strokes is designed for educational and informational use only for teachers, therapists, and parents. It is not intended as medical advice or therapeutic treatment that would be provided in an individualized treatment plan. If you suspect a child has delays, please consult an occupational therapist.