Handwriting Studio

Trace print and joined letters stroke by stroke on the four school lines, then free write and compare with the model.

1Choose Print (Years 1 and 2) or Joined (Years 3 and 4), then pick a practice set and a letter, word or sentence.
2Press Show me to watch it being written. Then put your finger, stylus or mouse on green dot 1 and follow the arrows.
3Trace each stroke in order. The dot only moves forward on the right path, so if you slip off or go the wrong way, go back to the dot.
4Good writing sits on the base line, short letters reach the dotted middle line, tall letters and capitals touch the sky line and tails hang to the bottom line.
5Read your stars: accuracy (close to the model), smoothness (one steady movement) and on the lines (the right height). Then try Free write and compare.

Australian Curriculum v9.0 · English · Years 1-4

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About This Game

Handwriting Studio is a stroke-by-stroke handwriting tracer on the same four lines children use at school: the sky line, the dotted middle line, the base line and the tail line. Years 1 and 2 practise unjoined print letters in lower case and upper case, grouped into letter families. Years 3 and 4 practise a general Australian school joined style: letters with exit strokes, the diagonal join to a short letter, the diagonal join to a tall letter, the horizontal join from o, r, v and w, and the letters that do not join. Each letter shows numbered start dots and direction arrows, a guide dot that only moves forward along the correct path, and a Show me animation. Children then trace words and short sentences, free write on lined paper and compare their writing with the model. Practice sheets print with faint model letters to trace.

Top Tip

Say the movement out loud as you trace: "around, up and down" for a, "down, up and over" for n. Saying it helps your hand remember the path.

Skills You Are Practising

Starting each letter at the right place and moving in the right direction
Placing letters on the base line with tall letters and tails at the right height
Writing lower case and capital print letters that are clearly formed
Joining letters with diagonal and horizontal joins
Knowing which letters do not join
Writing words and sentences with consistent size and growing fluency

In the real world

Handwriting is still used for notes, cards, forms, labels, exams and signatures. Clear writing means other people can read your message the first time.

For parents & teachers

Check your school’s handwriting style. States use slightly different fonts, so let the school model win if they disagree.
Look at posture first: feet flat, paper tilted, pencil held gently between thumb and first finger.
Praise a correct starting point and direction before neatness.
Print a practice sheet and do five minutes a day rather than a long session once a week.

Who it suits: Year 1: print letter families and capitals. Year 2: print words and fluency. Year 3: joined letter shapes and the four kinds of joins. Year 4: joined words and short sentences with speed and consistent size.

Australian Curriculum v9.0

This game practises these content descriptions. Tap a code to see its full wording and other games for it.

AC9E1LY08 (Year 1 English) write words using unjoined lower-case and upper-case letters
AC9E2LY08 (Year 2 English) write words legibly and with growing fluency using unjoined upper-case and lower-case letters
AC9E3LY08 (Year 3 English) write words using joined letters that are clearly formed and consistent in size
AC9E4LY08 (Year 4 English) write words using clearly formed joined letters, with developing fluency and automaticity

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