For the last 5-6 weeks my son (20 months) has been very interested in writing letters and words. As in, if you hand him a crayon, that's AAAAALLLLL he wants to do and he ask for his crayons to write 5-6 times a day. The major problem is that he does not have the motor skills to write yet and he is getting very frustrated. He can do O/o, I, M, a decent A, and a sort of Y and X depending on the day. I kind of wish he was happy scribbling but he is not. smirk If I give him a fat crayon for toddlers he has the typical fist grip but if I give him a thin crayon or pencil he uses a five finger grip which does help but he still doesn't have the coordination to really write.

I've been all over Pinterest and found Montessori sand trays for writing and wondered if anyone had used this with toddlers who were determined to write? I thought it might work since he would only have to use his finger. I also saw sandpaper letters but since he wouldn't have a final product of a letter I don't think he would go for that one.

The next crazy thing going on around here is "Mommy, write word in here." He constantly wants me to write words in his notebook with his crayons. I showed him his name and he got it in about 10 seconds. He definitely recognizes his name now and he has been recognizing words in his favorite books for a while so I know the ability exists at this point. I'm trying to follow his lead but I don't have a good idea of where to go. His favorite things are dump trucks, excavators, and bulldozers. Those words seem too complex and too long for such a young child to recognize. I thought about showing him stuff like dog and cat but I don't think he cares even a little about a dog or a cat. I'm happy to teach him words since he is showing interest and ability but I don't know where or how to start. Any ideas?