Mat Man® – Draw

English is a top-to-bottom, left-to-right language. Teaching a top-to-bottom habit is the secret to handwriting success. Children who start letters at the top develop speed and neatness. Those who start from the bottom generally struggle with handwriting.

Often, we judge a young child’s writing only by how the letters look. Do not be misled by the appearance of children’s letters and numbers. Children’s fluency and, ultimately, their neatness depends on their habits for letter and number formation. This is particularly true when writing demands increase. Try this experiment:

Make five lines down, slowly. Make five lines, alternating down/up. Now do it again, quickly.

    slowly slowly quickly quickly

Notice that when you make lines slowly, it doesn’t really matter where you start. But, when you add speed, it does matter where you start. Children who start at the top can be fast and neat! Tell families about this. Send children home singing this song to remind families to help children start at the top.

Where Do You Start Your Letters?

Tune: “If You’re Happy and You Know It”