Dalmatian Press - My Writing Tablet

Once again, I found myself digging through the mounds of primary writing material that my brood have outgrown. Since most of the books have been used over and over again, I've gotten to see which ones were worked and which ones didn’t – but more to the point – which ones made learning fun. And in the middle of the mess I came out with several copies of My Writing Tablet.

There really isn’t anything more basic than a writing tablet. But unless you stop and think about what it was like learning to write your first words, you’ll just assume that any lettering guide will do. Personally, my kids hated the lettering books that had the curved arrows showing them which line to make first and how to complete each letter correctly. But each child is different – so don’t be afraid to try different approaches – ultimately it should be the childs decision as to which letter book or guide he or she will use and feel most comfortable with.

The My Writing Tablet is a nice introduction to lettering the ‘correct’ way. Again, each person has their own way of writing – but this one manages to teach the basics without imposing a lot of rules in the process. The pages of the book are slightly thicker than newsprint and can easily be copied if you have more than one child using the book. The pages are thick but I suggest using crayons or thick pencils rather than markers. When they used markers on the pages about half of what they wrote shows up on the next few pages.

Learning To Letter

The book is broke down nicely. The front page contains the entire alphabet with the directional curves showing where to start and where to end each letter. This is a nice page to rip out and hang on the wall as a reference. I liked to put a piece of acetate over it and let the boys trace over it with crayons. When they were done I’d simply wipe it off with a clean, dry paper towel and let them try again if they wanted. This eliminated the need for purchasing the upper and lower case lettering guides that are sealed in plastic – you know – the ones you can never get completely clean.

The second group of pages takes each letter and places it on a line and gives the child plenty of room to copy the letter several times. Again, this is where you and your Xerox machine come in handy, by making copies you can save yourself some time, money and aggravation as well as taking some stress off your child. If they know it’s OK to make mistakes then they’ll have a lot more fun “learning to letter”. It’s just my own personal advice here but when kids are in a pressure free environment they seem to enjoy the learning experience a lot more. Force a kid to write the letter “A” over and over until it’s completely perfect and you’ll get the ‘sour face’ and possible be labeled a meanie for the rest of the day.

The next set of pages shows basic words such as cat, apple, dog and star. Much like the front page, the words are shown with the directional curves. Next to each word is ample space to repeat the word two or three times. Again, you can easily copy the pages for a little extra practice. This might be a little overwhelming for a small child that is just getting into the writing stages of education so try not to push them too hard when it comes to writing the words. You want them to get the hang of writing the letters correctly – not becoming a spelling wiz overnight.

Practice Makes Perfect

The tablet gives the child enough room to practice the upper and lower case letters but without repetition there’s no chance for retention. You can pick up blank writing or lettering tables at Wal-Mart or Target that are for different age groups. Some have the wide lines and others are a little smaller. Having a few of these around is a great way for kids to practice lettering once they’ve filled up the book. Of course, for $2.29 you can always go out and pick up additional copies of this book without going broke.

Since there are so many different writing and lettering tablets on the market it might be a hit or miss adventure to finding the one that your child feels most comfortable with. Some of the things to consider are the age of the child – if they are extremely young and still using chunky style crayons you might want to go with a larger floor type tablet [Crayola makes a great unlined one]. This will allow them to explore lettering without feeling ‘confined’ by the lines. Their overall knowledge of the alphabet is also important. Smaller kids need pre-printed books like this one so they have a constant reminder of the order of the letters as well as the upper and lower case visuals.

The Bottom Line

The boys liked this book but didn’t go completely crazy over it. Each one of them learned the lettering process at different ages and I tried my hardest to make sure that they didn’t write like chickens on crack – something that seems to be a widespread epidemic amongst children today. With kids receiving more computer time they get a little sloppy in the writing department and that is something that usually sticks with them for the rest of their lives.

If you are in the market for a lettering book or writing tablet this one is worth checking out. If you have kids you know how picky they can be, if they don’t show much interest in this book, then picking up a themed one [Bob The Builder, Blue’s Clue’s, Scooby-Doo etc] would be a great idea – this way you can see if this helps in the motivation department. The bottom line is that these are important stepping-stones in your childs educational process, offer them several avenues to explore and they’ll pick the one they feel most comfortable with.


The Stats

Name: My Writing Tablet
Published By: Dalmatian Press
Pages: 50
Price $2.29
ISBN: 1-888-567 104



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^V^ Freak ^V^

© 2004 Freak369



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