Igniting a Lifelong Love of Literacy

Elizabeth DeWitt unlocks the power of emergent writing in literacy development

Emergent literacy encompasses the foundational skills that underpin children’s later success in reading and writing. While early reading development often receives more attention, emergent writing plays an equally important role in supporting well-balanced literacy development. Through a child’s first encounter with drawing, scribbling, and letter-like forms, they will begin making sense of print—and of their own voices.

When children are encouraged to write from an early age, they engage with language in meaningful ways. These first marks on paper are not just early communication attempts; they are the beginning of lifelong literacy development that is critical for academic success. Research from the National Early Literacy Panel (NELP) shows that emergent writing skills, such as name writing, are strong predictors of later abilities in decoding, reading comprehension, and spelling. This connection underscores the importance of fostering writing experiences in early childhood as a foundational step toward long-term academic success.

The Connection: Writing Reinforces Reading
Despite being taught separately, reading and writing are fundamentally linked and interdependent. Research tells us that writing helps solidify the foundational skills children need to become proficient readers. Specifically, emergent writing activities support key components of the science of reading, such as:

• Phonological awareness: When children attempt to write words, they must listen closely to the sounds in those words, also known as phonological awareness—the ability to hear and manipulate parts of spoken language. This deepens their awareness of phonemes and syllables, which is critical for decoding in reading in later grades.
• Alphabet knowledge: Forming letters helps children understand the relationship between letter names, shapes, and sounds. As children learn to write letters, they build the ability to recognize and use them in reading (decoding) and spelling (encoding).
• Concepts of print: Through participating in shared or individual writing activities, children see that print carries meaning and follows specific conventions, such as directionality and spacing. They begin to grasp that text can be found not just in stories but everywhere—labels, lists, signs…
• Oral language development and comprehension: While learning new words through storytelling and drawing activities, children are given opportunities to use and apply new vocabulary through describing their ideas or retelling a story. This strengthens their comprehension and expressive language skills.

Long-Term Benefits of Early Writing Experiences
Emergent writing lays a critical foundation for lifelong learning. The impact of these early experiences extends well beyond the preschool years, offering lasting advantages throughout a child’s academic journey.

• Empower children to thrive: Literacy skills developed from birth to age five are closely linked to later academic success. Emergent writing supports young children in understanding the purpose of print, the connection between drawing and writing, and how to control writing tools—all of which contribute to smoother transitions into elementary school. Research shows that emergent writing in preschool predicts stronger conventional literacy skills in the early grades, setting the stage for continued achievement.
• Promote foundational literacy and cognitive skills: By engaging with print, children begin to grasp that spoken words can be represented by written symbols. They learn that marks on a page can convey real ideas and intentions. This understanding is fundamental to reading success. Through emergent writing, children explore concepts like letter formation, sequencing (left-to-right, top-to-bottom), letter recognition, and letter–sound associations. These early literacy activities also enhance critical thinking, problem-solving, and memory skills by encouraging children to organize and express their thoughts on paper.
• Support social–emotional and interpersonal development: Collaborative writing experiences foster communication and social interaction. Children learn to share ideas, take turns, and respect one another’s contributions. Seeing their writing acknowledged builds confidence and a sense of accomplishment. As they consider how to represent words with pictures or letters, children engage in creative problem-solving—an important step toward abstract thinking. Additionally, these experiences help children better understand the world around them, including basic concepts about physical and social environments, which research shows is a key predictor of future success in both science and literacy.
• Strengthen fine motor skills: Studies have shown that fine motor development is a powerful predictor of later academic achievement—even more so than early proficiency in reading or math. Writing experiences that involve scribbling, drawing, or forming letters with multiple writing tools helps strengthen the small muscles in the hands and fingers. This is essential preparation for the increased rigor of writing tasks in elementary school. The Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards emphasize the importance of providing children with varied opportunities to manipulate tools and materials as part of writing development.
• Boost motivation and engagement: When children use emergent writing to convey their ideas, feelings, and stories, they gain a sense of purpose and pride in their work, which builds motivation and engagement. As they participate in a variety of writing activities, they gain confidence in their ability to express themselves and take ownership of their learning.
• Cultivate a love for learning: When writing is presented as a playful, creative, and purposeful activity, rather than repetitive drills, children develop a positive attitude toward literacy. This early positive engagement can lead to a lifelong love of reading and writing.

Supporting Emergent Writing in the Classroom and at Home
Creating a literacy-rich environment that supports emergent writing does not require a fancy setup with expensive materials or rigid instruction. What’s most important is having a child-centered, play-based approach. Pre-K should be a joyful celebration of learning—one that values exploration, discovery, and connection.

For children who may be unfamiliar with certain materials, introduce them with excitement and curiosity. Talk about what the materials are, and ask if the children have used or seen anything similar before. Be sure to model how to use and care for these materials. Then, invite children to explore both alongside you and independently, fostering a sense of shared discovery and confidence.

Teachers and caregivers can support emergent writing while fostering a love of literacy through these practical strategies and activities:

• Offer various writing materials: Provide easy access to varied writing tools designed for little hands and developing grips. Consider options like Flip Crayons^®, Pencils for Little Hands, and Little Chalk Bits by Learning Without Tears—each made to support the development of a strong pencil grasp. Incorporate varied surfaces as well, such as paper strips, slate chalkboards, and multisensory tools like Roll-A-Dough. With Roll-A-Dough Letters^®, children roll nontoxic dough into “snakes” and form letters directly over letter cards—a playful way to learn letter formation while strengthening fine motor skills. The tray can also be used with shaving cream or sand for finger-tracing letters, offering another sensory experience. A rich variety of materials sparks curiosity, encourages engagement, and supports fine motor development by building endurance, proper grip, and an understanding of directionality. 
• Encourage drawing and scribbling: Embrace scribbles and early attempts at writing as valid forms of communication. Invite children to describe their drawings and write down their words. This will help them connect their ideas to the words that represent them. Activities like Learning Without Tears’s Mat Man can offer a fun, structured way to support this development. In this activity, children learn to draw a person with recognizable body parts in a sequence, using music, wooden pieces, a mat, and a shared drawing experience with an adult. Over time, many children progress from simple figures—such as a circle with lines—to more detailed, recognizable drawings. They often take great pride in their creations and the progress they make.
• Teach letter formation based on fine motor research: When introducing letter formation, it’s essential to choose approaches grounded in fine motor development and multisensory learning. Programs that incorporate music, movement, and hands-on materials can help young children build essential writing skills in a way that feels natural and engaging. Foundational research from Arnold Gessell outlines a typical developmental sequence for fine motor control: children generally master vertical strokes first, followed by horizontal lines, curves, and finally diagonals. Instruction that honors this sequence builds writing readiness in a way that aligns with how young children naturally grow and learn. Readiness & Writing by Learning Without Tears is one of the few evidence-based programs that closely follows this developmental pathway. Through multisensory tools—such as magnetic tracing boards and tactile letter cards—it offers children repeated, joyful practice with the right strokes at the right time, laying a strong foundation for confident writing.
• Model daily writing: Let children see you writing as a natural part of everyday life. As you make a grocery list, talk about what you’re doing: “Let’s look in the fridge and write down what we need—milk, eggs, and bread.” Label items around the house like “sink,” “door,” and “table,” reading them aloud with the children as you put them in place. Teachers and caregivers can write notes, letters, make to-do lists or job charts, or mark calendars. When children see adults writing for real purposes, it deepens their understanding that print has meaning and is useful.
• Incorporate writing into dramatic play: Early childhood environments should be rich with opportunities for dramatic play. Encourage children to create signs, menus, and labels during imaginative play, helping them see that while writing has purpose, it can be fun too. For example, when children are playing in a play kitchen, pretending to have a restaurant, or helping with dinner, help them create a menu. Use drawings, grocery-store sale papers, and/or clipart and work together to label the images on the menu.
• Engage in shared writing: Collaborate with children to create and write stories or messages. This allows them to contribute their ideas and see how the words come together to paint a bigger picture. To illustrate, after reading a story together, encourage children to imagine what could happen next and to expand on the characters, events, and storyline. Another activity to co-author with children is when there is a big event in the community or a life event that impacts the group. Recent research underscores that when children engage in storytelling and writing about their significant experiences, they cultivate a stronger capacity to express emotions, ideas, and personal meaning through language.
• Integrate print concepts with reading: Utilize read-aloud time to connect print concepts to books. Before reading, explore the book’s physical features. Show children the front cover, back cover, and spine, explaining what each part is. Point out the author and illustrator to help children understand the roles behind book creation. Take a moment to do a “picture walk” by looking through the illustrations together. Talk about what you see and encourage children to predict what they think will happen in the story. During read-alouds, draw attention to the text by pointing out interesting letters, punctuation marks, or specific words. Ask open-ended questions that encourage deeper thinking, such as “What’s happening here?” or “Who are these characters?,” to promote comprehension and engagement. After reading, discuss whether their predictions came true. Then, invite children to draw pictures about how the story made them feel. This helps them connect emotions with the narrative and offers another way to express their understanding.

Igniting a Love of Literacy
By valuing emergent writing alongside early reading, educators and families can nurture a love of learning from the start. It’s through these scribbles, symbols, and early stories that children begin to find their voices. And it’s in honoring those voices that we help create a lifelong love of literacy in children.

One of the most inspiring educational quotes is, “Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.” As teachers and caregivers, let’s join together in being champions of every scribble, drawing, and imaginative story—because when we celebrate children’s earliest expressions or creations, we’re not just teaching literacy, we’re igniting it. Start today: Celebrate their scribbles as the first steps in their story and ignite their love-of-literacy fire.

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Elizabeth DeWitt, EdD, is a senior adoptions and curriculum specialist for Learning Without Tears. A former inner-city preschool teacher, she has over 20 years of experience in early childhood education. She holds a doctorate in organizational leadership with a concentration in educational leadership, and a master’s in early childhood special education.