Letter L Handwriting Practice

Say the two moves slowly: down, then across. Place the pencil at the top and do not lift it at the corner. Trace the Large row, then the Medium row. After that, write a few L words on the blank lines. Lamp, leaf and lion all work well, and a child can draw one beside the line. This page can be done in around five minutes.

The corner is the whole lesson. A child must stop the downward motion, change direction and move right, which is harder than it sounds at age four. Typical errors are a rounded corner, a foot that slants up or a stick that tilts. Lowercase l is just a tall line, and in many typefaces it looks the same as capital I and the number 1, so context matters. It is also the first letter of the child's likely first word, love.

Start on Large to give the corner room. If the child rounds it off, say that the pencil has to stop for a second. When the foot reaches about the same length as half the stick, you can drop to Medium. Practice a row of L next to a row of T for a calm contrast between corner and cross.

Why does my child round the corner of L?

They have not stopped the pencil before turning. Ask them to pause at the bottom and count one, then go across. Doing it slowly with a finger first often fixes it in a day.

What is the difference between capital L and lowercase l?

Capital L has a foot to the right. Lowercase l is a plain tall line. Both reach to the top line, so size alone will not tell them apart.

Is L suitable for a three year old?

Often yes, if the child can already draw a steady line down and a line across. Offer only the Large rows, keep it to a couple of traces, and stop while it still feels easy.