Your toddler is growing at a fast pace and is heading towards turning 3 year old. By now, he or she must have even started attending pre-school and if not, it's time you prepare them for the same.

This is the time when the major development takes place in respect to your toddler's learning skills. Many toddlers learn the art of writing alphabets while a few exhibit the art in form of scribblings, and there can be kids who may still find it hard to hold their grip on a pencil. Well, there's nothing to fear if your child hasn't yet mastered the writing skills. It's a gradual process, but you must make consistent efforts to encourage the writing habit so that your child excels it sooner.

Here let us know some effective ways by which you can help your toddler develop the writing skills. Have a look:

Make it a part of their play-time: Kids at the age of 2 happen to be very active and often indulge in playing. Use their play-time as the tool to develop writing skills. Hand over A-4 size sheets, crayons and pencils with strong grip to them, and give them the liberty to show off their writing talent. You can ask them to write specific alphabets, or even make them over-write the letters written by you. Make it a regular habit so that it comes in practice.

Don't ignore their scribbling: Not all toddlers will be able to write the letters perfectly. Some might only manage to scribble and show it you as if they have written the letter as told by you. Don't ignore their scribbling, instead encourage them and show how the letter is written. You will have to be patient till the child learns to write it properly. Scolding or yelling won't do any good.

Use Letter Cut-Outs: At this stage, kids mostly use their visual skills to learn what is taught to them. If you want them to write things perfectly, first make them identify the alphabets. For this, you can use the big cut-outs of letter and paint each one with different colors. Show them the colors and the cut-outs, and keep asking which letter is presented in which color.

No need for instructions: Allow your toddler to experiment and explore.  Creativity is all about having the power to express oneself in the desired way. This independence is what your growing toddler needs to be confident, competent, and intelligent. Just sit nearby, and observe. Take pleasure in whatever your toddler comes up with.  

Notice the process also, not just the result: Compliment what your child does. It may not be a perfect art but let him or her feel encouraged. Watch out the way it's been done, don't just focus on the end result. Praise them if they have drawn neat lines or made use of good colors. When you praise their efforts, they will feel encouraged to do it in a better way next time.  

Experiment with different art materials: Don't just stick to the age-old paper-pencil method. Widen the horizon and experiment with various other things. Allow the child to paint with cotton balls, the q-tips, sponges, etc. Let them write down the alphabets using different colors or mold them using some clay.  You can even use the sand art for this purpose. Spread a little sand on a big tray and make the child draw the letters on it.

Display their writing art: We all feel good when our work is appreciated as this gives us the power to improvise and make it better with every attempt. Same thing works for your toddler as well. Whenever your child writes the letters or does any piece of art, keep it for display. You can stick them on the wall of your kid's room or even have a small notice board somewhere in the house where the work can be displayed. 

Be calm while helping your little one explore the writing world. Don't expect wonders to happen overnight. The learning process has just begun and your child has a long way to go!