Trace the Letter B
Preschool · 3–5Dashed guides and a practice row for the uppercase B and lowercase b. The tall line goes down first and the bump comes after; starting with the bump is what turns a b into a d. B is for ball, bear and butterfly — say the sound rather than the letter name as your child traces. Print on A4 or US Letter.
Stroke order for B
Lowercase b is a tall line straight down, then back up to the middle and round to the right in one bump that closes on the line. Drawing the line first is what keeps it a b — a child who starts with the bump has to guess which side the line goes on, and about half the time they guess wrong.
Capital B is the same tall line with two bumps, top and bottom. Children commonly make the two bumps different sizes, which is cosmetic and not worth correcting at this stage.
The letter this one turns into
If a b comes out as a d, do not correct the shape — correct the starting point. Line first, then bump, every time. Saying it out loud while they trace embeds the sequence far more reliably than pointing at a finished mistake.
Frequently asked questions
- My child writes b as d every time. What helps?
- Teach the stroke order rather than the shape. Line first, then the bump — built that way the bump has only one place to go. The two-fists bed trick works as a check afterwards.
- At what age should b and d reversals stop?
- Around seven. Before that they are expected, and heavy correction tends to make writing slower and more anxious without making it more accurate.