Writing alphabet letters well seems to be a primary focus of preschool and kindergarten curriculum, but I have found that not focusing on this skill too much has actually made it easier and more enjoyable for M to learn.
While I may occasionally print a worksheet with letters for M to trace, that is very rare and only if she seems to want to. Most of the time, we just write letters as part of our craft activities. Like yesterday, for example, we were drawing and coloring on the picnic table and M decided that she wanted to write the names of all the new babies that have recently been born to friends and neighbors. So I told her how to spell their names, and she wrote the letters really well. I find this whole process fascinating because I have never explicitly worked on letter writing with her and yet, like most things with homeschooling, if she's interested in learning something and it's not arbitrary or arduous, she'll gravitate toward integrating the skill into her day.
Many homeschoolers-- particularly unschoolers-- talk about the need to trust in kids' natural curiosity and eagerness to learn and advise against unnecessary timetables to determine competency. I am beginning to observe this amazing process more freqently and it certainly makes me more willing to let my kids dictate their learning and not be at all concerned about a learning "timetable."
