When did your child learn to write his/her name?

Question

hi. my friend's daughter is 4 and she can only write ABCD and that's it. she can't write her name yet but the other kid in our neighborhood who is also 4 can write her name and can draw too. my friend is a bit disappointed with her child.

Answer 1

My son wrote it at about 4 1/2 but only because he was pushed - and he only has three letters in his name.

All you can do is encourage them. Children learn at different rates. When they start school they all learn to write their name anyway.

It's nothing to worry about ;)

Answer 2

I have a good one for you!

My son, Chris, who was about 4 at the time, came and told me one day"Look, Mommy! I can write my name!"  He spelled on the paper - "N-A-K-E-D"  I laughed so hard I thought I would pass out!

(we still call him "naked" as a family joke sometimes! haha)

Answer 3

all children learn at different times. if she really cares about it then she should really work with the child. my son didnt learn to write his name till he was 5! and now hes the top of his class

Answer 4

All children learn at their own rate.  I have twins that are 4 1/2 and one of my daughters was writing her name at 3, and my other daughter started about 3 months after her.

Answer 5

My daughter started writing her name at four. It just depends on the kid really. But I don't think there's anything to worry about and she certainly shouldn't be disappointed of her child by any means.....

Answer 6

Totally depends on the kid but at 4  years old it is not unreasonable to be working with the kid on their name. Length and spelling difficulty also play into how long it will take them to learn to write their name (i.e. Amy vs. Keileigh...shorter is easier to memorize). My older daughter was four when she learned and my younger daughter is just over three and can write her name (it doesn't hurt that her name is only four letters long and it's two letters repeated).

Your friend might look into getting some Zaner-Blosser paper (or D'Nelian) at a teacher's store as well as a big pencil (with grippies...they sell them at teacher/educational stores) and work with her daughter with her name each day. Have her practice writing it three times. Once she has that down she can start in on the alphabet. If she's having serious problems holding the pencil correctly she might want to look into having her pediatrician evaulate her to see if there's a physical reason she cannot write her name but given the fact she can write 'ABCD' I would think that it's practice/learning over a physical reason she can't write.

Best of luck to her!

Answer 7

My daughter is 5 and I think she learned to write her name by the time she was 4.  she now writes all her letters and can spell a few easy words.  I think kids just learn at there own pace.  Tell your friend not to be dissapointed in her daughter that will only discourage her.  tell her to sit with her and practice everyday and give her praise.  My daughter just started trying to  ride her bike without training wheels a few days ago and believe me I got frusterated but I always praised her and told her i was pround of her and today she was riding all over the place.  Tell your friend not to worry and her daughter will learn in time.  i hope this helps

Answer 8

I'm a preschool teacher - the average age my students have learned to write their name is 3.75 yrs old.  

children develop differently.  i bet there are things your friend's daughter can do that other kids her age aren't doing yet.  she'll be fine.

Answer 9

My 7 yr old at almost 6

My 5 yr old at 31/2

my  4 yr just started

Every child learns in their own time at their own speed.

Answer 10

my daughter at 3 1/2 years could write her first name but most of the time she would write it backwards.But now at almost 4yrs she can write her name in all upper case letters except the "i" in her name..my daughter has always been "above" average in her milestones but my son who is now two--is real smart- but nowhere near of how my daughter was/is..every child is different!!! i was real bad at writing and reading when i was real young but by the time i got to middle school everything just "clicked" for me.(then i was at the top of my class)..tell your friend to just always encourage her and of course never make her feel bad bc she will learn when she is ready!! srry so long!!!

Answer 11

Our oldest could write her entire full name at age 3- very unusual. Our 2nd could write her 1st name by 3 1/2 and her last name by almost 6!-we have a long last name. Our 3rd is not able to write his name yet- he's 3. Some good advice for your friend would be to give her little one as many different opportunities to practice writing her name as she can. Use many different types of writing items- crayons, pens, markers, pencils, paint, etc... Have her spread out some shaving cream on the table and let her use her finger to write her name. Use various food items to spell out her name- cheerios or any other cereal works great. Have your friend write the name out and then have the daughter trace it with her finger as well as write over it with a marker. She will get it!