Handwriting Practice Worksheets

Line and Shape Tracing Worksheets

By , Handwriting Practice Worksheets

Pick the lines and shapes your child is ready for and print pre-writing pages: a solid example, dotted rows, then space to try alone.

Lines and shapes
Practice
Lines
Shapes

Learning order picks the lines and shapes children usually learn first, in that order: up and down, side to side, circle, cross, both slants, square, X and triangle.

Look

Height of each line or shape. Start big for young children.

Trace style
Tracing darkness

Printed too faint? Pick Dark.

Starting dots

A green dot shows where to start each line or shape, and the arrow shows which way to go.

Rows
Paper
Orientation

Landscape gives longer rows.

Line weight
Highlighted writing band

Shades the space between the dashed line and the baseline on 3- and 4-line paper. Sky, grass, ground colors the top, middle and tail spaces.

For example: Trace each word, then write it on your own.

Loading the handwriting fonts…

Download PDF saves the pages as a file. You can also press Print worksheet and choose "Save as PDF" in the print window.

What you type stays on your device and is never uploaded.

How to make a line and shape page

  1. Tick the lines and shapes you want, or press Learning order to pick the ones children usually learn first.
  2. Choose a size. 1 in or 1 1/2 in suits most three and four year olds.
  3. Keep the solid example and starting dots on, set the tracing and empty rows, then print or download the PDF.

Lines and shapes before letters

Why start here. Children's occupational therapy services describe pre-writing shapes as the pencil strokes that most letters, numbers and early drawings are made from. Practicing them first means the hand already knows the straight lines and curves that show up again in letters.

The usual order. Health services that publish pre-writing guidance list the shapes in a broadly similar order, with small differences between them: up and down lines, side to side lines, circles, crosses, slanted lines, squares, an X and then triangles. Learning order follows that sequence. Of the handouts checked for this page, only one, from an Ontario hospital, gives ages. It puts copying at about 3 for vertical and horizontal lines and circles, about 4 for a cross, between 4 and 5 for slanted lines, a square and an X, and a little after 5 for a triangle. Treat these as a rough guide, not a deadline.

Imitate before copying. Watching an adult draw a shape and then drawing it (imitating) comes before copying it from a picture, and one NHS handout notes that a child who can't yet imitate a shape shouldn't be expected to copy it. These sheets add a solid example, rows to trace and an empty row to try alone, so the page can be used at either stage.

Keep it playful. Big sizes, crayons or markers and a few minutes at a time work better than long sessions. For more ways to build hand strength first, see the fine motor activities for preschoolers. If a child is a lot older than these ages and still finds lines and shapes very hard, the guide on when handwriting practice isn't enough covers who to ask.

Example: a first pre-writing page

A parent of a three year old presses Learning order, unticks everything after the circle, keeps the 1 1/2 in size and dotted lines with starting dots, and prints one page: up and down lines, side to side lines and circles, each with a solid example, two rows to trace and an empty row. A few weeks later they add the cross and the slanted lines.

Questions people ask

What order should children learn pre-writing lines and shapes?

Health services that publish pre-writing guidance usually list up and down lines first, then side to side lines, circles and crosses, with slanted lines, squares, an X and triangles after that. The exact order differs a little between sources. Press Learning order to select that set.

At what age can a child copy a triangle?

One hospital handout puts copying a triangle at a little over 5 years, after the square and the X. It was the only source checked for this page that gives ages, so use it as a rough guide.

Can I choose which lines and shapes go on the worksheet?

Yes. Tick any mix of eight line patterns and ten shapes, or use Lines only or Shapes only. Each one gets its own block of rows.

What do the green dots mean?

A green dot marks where to start each line or shape. Pick Dots and arrows to also show which way to move the pencil first.

Should pre-writing sheets have handwriting lines?

Not at first. The sheets print without guide lines by default so the shapes stand alone. Turn on guide lines under Paper when your child is ready to move on to letters.

Are these worksheets free?

Yes. Print or download as many as you like for home or classroom use. There is no sign-up.

Related worksheet makers

Sources

  1. Pre-Printing Skills (daycare information handout), Health Sciences North, Sudbury, Ontario
  2. Top tips for developing pre-writing skills, NHS Fife
  3. Pre-writing skills: early years, North Cheshire and Merseyside NHS, Occupational Therapy for Children and Young People
  4. Pre-writing Skills for Children, Central Coast Local Health District, NSW Health