Letter V Handwriting Practice

Print one sheet and let the child say the sound, /v/, with teeth on the lip before the pencil moves. Trace the solid V's first, then the dashed ones, then the dotted ones, and leave the empty lines for the end. Ten minutes is plenty for a five or six year old. Slip the page into a sleeve and use a dry-erase marker for extra rounds. Praise the point at the bottom, since that is where most V's go soft.

Capital V is two straight diagonals that meet in a point sitting exactly on the baseline. Lowercase v is the same shape, only shorter, so this letter teaches size control as much as shape. Children often round the bottom into a U or let the two arms land at different heights. V comes after the first diagonal strokes a child learns on A, and it leads straight into W, which is two V's side by side.

Large lines suit a child still gripping the pencil in a fist, because the diagonals have room to be steep and straight. Move to Medium once the point at the bottom lands cleanly. Small is for second graders tidying their work. Switch Style to Cursive only after print V and v are steady, since the cursive v is joined and curved.

Why does my child's V come out looking like a U?

Rounding happens when the pencil slows at the bottom. Have the child draw down in one firm stroke, stop with a tap at the baseline, then go up. Starting on Large lines gives the corner room.

Should the two strokes of V be one movement or two?

Teach two separate diagonals at first, left arm down then right arm up from the point, or a single zigzag stroke if that is what your school uses. Pick one and keep it the same on every row.

Which comes first, capital V or lowercase v?

Capital first. It is tall enough to see the angle clearly. Once that is steady, lowercase v is the same shape in half the height, so most children pick it up within a few rows.