26 Wonderful Word Tracing Worksheets: Free & Easy Print
Looking for word tracing worksheets for kindergarten students?
Well, if your early writers have mastered tracing lines and tracing letters, then they are ready to move on to words!
These printable worksheets are arranged in alphabetic order from A-Z. Each of the practice sheets has four common words that start with the same letter and letter sound.
There are also four pictures to color that correspond with each letter of the alphabet. Colorful pictures are such a pain to print, plus coloring is more fun!
At the bottom of this page, you will find simple instructions to download your own pdf file of all of the worksheets. No email address is required!
Benefits of Tracing Words
Young children who have learned their alphabet letters are probably used to tracing.
They have traced letters, numbers, and probably shapes.
But tracing words causes them to think and work a little bit harder because they are not writing the same letter over and over again.
The child has to transition from one letter to the next.
They are also learning letter size, letter spacing, fine motor skills, handwriting skills, and more! Eventually, these building blocks will be used to write sentences and paragraphs down the road.
What Kind of Words Will Be Traced?
A lot of thought was put into the words used in this worksheet packet. I wanted to support the work that has been done to teach letter sounds.
Each new word starts with a basic consonant sound or short vowel sound. No long vowel sounds, soft c, soft g, or silent letters.
Young children will probably not be able to read most of the words, unless they already know them as sight words. There are picture clues though that will help them understand what they are tracing.
For reference, this is our favorite phonics based reading curriculum and spelling curriculum.
How To Prepare Kids For Tracing Words
To ensure your young learner’s success, there are a few things to consider before diving into these practice sheets.
1. Line And Letter Tracing
As mentioned above, your child should feel confident with tracing lines and letters before you move on to words. If your child still needs to sharpen those skills, click on the links above to get plenty of practice worksheets
2. Interest In Writing
Is your child very resistant to writing? Depending on what early age you’re working with, it might be best to wait. A few months of development can make a huge difference!
A great way to get them engaged is to have them practice tracing their own name. This worksheet maker can provide you with a customized name tracing worksheet.
You could also use that tool to create a custom worksheet with the dog’s name, their favorite sport, etc.
The cute coloring pictures on these tracing sheets are also designed to help engage your student and get them interested in writing.
3. The Proper Tools
Small hands often need a few extra things to make writing comfortable.
Look into a chunky pencil or a quality pencil grip to help your child write more easily. It will also reduce muscle fatigue. I have said many times that I wish I had done this with my oldest child.
If you’re a classroom teacher, consider pulling out your heavy duty page protector so you can reuse these worksheets with dry erase markers.
Check Out Your Word Tracing Worksheet Packet!
The letter A tracing sheet includes an apple, alligator, astronaut, and ant.
These are all intentionally short /a/ sound words to support those early phonics skills.
If your student struggles with letter reversal issues (like most kids do), check out these letter b worksheets and letter d worksheets for extra practice.
Very few words start with the basic /ks/ sound. Words like box and fox do end with it.
The words in the above tracing worksheet say the /x/ letter name or the /z/ sound. If you want your student to have more practice with words that end in the /ks/ sound, check out these letter x worksheets.
What About Cursive Handwriting?
Many homeschool parents are eager to start cursive handwriting.
I have a little bit of a controversial opinion on this. I think a kid needs to know how to read cursive and sign their name. If they want to learn to write it – then go for it! There are tons of quality cursive workbooks out there.
But if your child is resistant, then let it go. A much more crucial skill you could focus on is typing.
More Kindergarten Resources
Easy Color by Number Worksheets
Addition Worksheets for Kindergarten
AT Words Worksheets For Kindergarten
Click Here To Download Your Word Tracing Worksheet Packet
The above text link will take you to an instant download file for your word tracing sheet packet. Terms of Use: Homeschool, classroom, co-op, and personal use only. The Simple Homeschooler printables are not authorized for commercial use.
I hope that you and your student enjoy using these word tracing worksheets in your school day!
The more that your little learners practice, the sooner they will be off writing their own words.
It happens fast, Homeschool Mama.
As your child is working on writing, you might be interested in working on the math skill of number tracing.
These number tracing worksheets will take your student through all the steps!
Be sure to share with your homeschooling and teacher friends!
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