Color a name before tracing the letters
Color a name before tracing the letters when the pencil is still a fist. Leo is 4. He will hold a crayon. Tonight the letters of his name are an outline, and he colors inside them. The pencil stays in the cup until the crayon can stay inside the line.
Open the name coloring page. If the box is empty, the page still draws Emma, the first name in the hint. Type the child's name before you print. One name on each line. Each line is its own page.
One name, and what sits around it
On the English page the font starts as Indie Flower, the paper is US Letter, the decorations are stars, and the outline is 10. The letters are a dark outline with a white inside, so the shapes in the margin do not show through the name. A pale dashed line sits inside the outline. Color up to that dash.
Stars scatters six small shapes: stars, hearts, and a sparkle. Animals puts a cat, a fish, a bird, and a butterfly in the corners. Machines puts a car, a rocket, a plane, and a robot. None leaves the name by itself.
A long name shrinks until it fits the page width. Christopher still prints. It does not keep the size that a three-letter name gets.
A short site line sits at the bottom of the page. The switch above the download buttons turns it off. PDF and PNG both download. A class list is one name per line, in one file.
Which night this is
| Age | Outline | Decorations | The next sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3–4 | Slide it toward 22, so the line is easier to see. | Stars, or None when the shapes get all the crayon. | Stay on this page for a few nights. |
| 5–6 | Leave it at 10. | One set, and leave it there. | Name tracing the next night: the same name, one dark row, then pale rows. |
| 7+ | Coloring is optional. | None. | The tracing sheet. The bubble letters have done their job. |
Coloring practices seeing the shape. Tracing practices making the stroke. They are two nights. This page has no arrow on the letter. Stroke order arrives later, one letter at a time, on the letter pages.
When the decorations win
A 4-year-old who colors the cat and leaves the letters white is finished with the animals for tonight. Switch decorations to None and print the name again. If the crayon still will not follow a line, leave the name and do lines and curves first. Come back to the name when a straight line is a normal thing to draw.