✨ From Scribbles to Sentences: Understanding Writing Development ✨

Angela Comer-Lam
Sep 9
3 min read

September 8th, 2025

Hello amazing parent!

There’s something truly magical about watching your child’s writing journey unfold—one squiggle, swirl, and “wobbly word” at a time. If you’ve ever wondered, “Is this normal?” when looking at your child’s early attempts at writing, you’re not alone! Every writer starts somewhere, and every stage is worth celebrating.

Let’s sprinkle a little encouragement and understanding on what writing really looks like as children grow, so you can cherish every mark they make.

1. The Land of Scribbles (Ages 2-3)

At this stage, writing looks a lot like wild storms of lines, circles, and zigzags.

What’s happening: Your child is exploring how marks can appear on paper—this is the very first step!
How to support: Hand over plenty of crayons and space to doodle. Every scribble is a tiny work of art and an important learning step.

2. Magical Marks & Letter-Like Shapes (Ages 3-4)

Now you’ll start to see shapes that almost look like letters, or maybe their name in a jumble of lines.

What’s happening: Children begin to understand that writing has meaning and might try to “write” their thoughts, even if you can’t read it yet.
How to support: Celebrate their efforts! Ask them what their “writing” says and write it down together.
Fun Tip: Make a ‘Bonne Homme’ book for them, (this is something my children’s first school did for them when we lived in France) translated this means ‘Good Man’. So basically, it is a plan page drawing book, ask your child to draw a person. Make sure to date the page, then talk to your children about the drawing and label the picture. The first drawing may resemble a Mr Potato Head, with arms and legs coming off the body, but as they grow so will the details of their drawing. This a wonderful keepsake for you and your children. I would suggest doing a drawing every 6 months.

3. Invented Spelling & First Words (Ages 4-5)

Letters start to appear! Words might be spelled phonetically (“kat” for cat), and sentences will look like a string of letters with exciting guesses at spelling.

What’s happening: Your child is connecting sounds with letters—a huge leap in learning!
How to support: Encourage their attempts. Resist the urge to correct every word—praise their creative spelling and ask them to “read” their writing to you.
Tip: When correcting their work, look at what is right and not what is wrong, as you will find there are more correct letters in a word that wrong ones. Try putting little ticks above the correct letters, this is a great encouragement.

4. Early Sentences & Real Stories (Ages 5-6+)

Now you’ll spot sentences (sometimes with missing spaces or backwards letters), and your child might even write simple stories or notes.

What’s happening: They’re using writing to communicate ideas, feelings, and stories—how wonderful!
How to support: Show excitement for every note, label, or story. Display their work proudly and ask questions about their writing.
Tip: If you are having problems with spaces between words a fun way to encourage this is to use a lolly stick, we have one in the classroom called Spacey and the children all love it, I coloured it to make it more fun.

Celebrating Every Stage

Just as a tiny seed grows into a mighty tree, every scribble and “invented” word is a sign of progress. Children need to know their writing matters—messy or neat, it all counts!

Ways to Celebrate:

Hang their writing on the fridge or make a “writing wall.”
Keep a special folder or scrapbook of their writing journey.
Read their stories or notes aloud together.
Write them a note in return!

A Little Encouragement

It’s easy to worry if your child’s writing doesn’t look “perfect.” But remember: each stage is a magical part of the journey. With lots of encouragement, patience, and a sprinkle of celebration, your child will grow into a confident writer in their own time.

If you’d like to share your child’s writing milestones or have any questions, just reply—I’d love to hear your stories!

Happy writing adventures to you and your little one!

Warm regards,

Angela

Easy English for Kids