Trace the Letter S
Preschool · 3–5Dashed guides and a practice row for the uppercase S and lowercase s. It changes direction twice inside one stroke, so a wrong start mirrors the whole letter. Trace it big, with the arm rather than the fingers. S is for sun, star and snake — say the sound rather than the letter name as your child traces. Print on A4 or US Letter.
Stroke order for S
One stroke with two changes of direction: start at the top right, curve back and to the left, cross through the middle, then curve forward and to the right at the bottom. Getting the first curve going the right way decides the whole letter.
Capital and lowercase are the same shape, so every attempt here counts twice.
The most reversed letter after b and d
Because a wrong start mirrors everything that follows. The fix is size: trace it large, with the whole arm rather than the fingers — in the air, on a back, on a steamy window. Movement learned big transfers down to pencil size far better than the other way round.
Frequently asked questions
- Why is S reversed so often?
- It changes direction twice inside one stroke, so a wrong start mirrors the entire letter. Large tracing, using the arm rather than the fingers, fixes it faster than small practice.
- Does practising S help with anything else?
- Capital and lowercase are the same shape, so every attempt counts twice — and the direction-change control transfers to the numerals 2 and 5, which reverse for the same reason.