Letter Formation Families
Understand which letters belong to which handwriting families based on similar formation patterns and practise letters in groups
Teaching approaches
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1 approach
Some letters are in the same formation family because they start with the same movement. c, a, d, and g all start with a curve. Practicing the shared start helps handwriting stay consistent.
Spend about 10 minutes practicing the curve family c, a, d, g.
Learning resources
Reviewed external links that reinforce this concept. They do not replace Gakuva’s teaching approach.
Forming Letters Correctly
KS1 guide to the four handwriting letter families (long ladder, one-armed robot, curly caterpillar, zigzag). Adult-guided video/demo—not independent graded tracing.
Proof: After watching, photograph paper practice of one letter from each family with starting points marked, plus a parent note naming the four families.
Long Ladder Letters
Focused demo for long ladder letters (l, i, t, u, j, y). Pair with paper practice in the same session.
Proof: Photograph three ladder letters formed top-to-bottom with correct start points.
One-Armed Robot Letters
Focused demo for one-armed robot letters (b, h, k, m, n, p, r).
Proof: Photograph three robot-family letters with correct entry strokes noted by an adult.
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Check understanding
- Group letters by similar strokes (e.g. c, a, d, g, o family — all start with a curve)
- Explain why certain letters are practised together
- Form letters within the same family consistently using the shared movement pattern
“Does your child understand that certain letters are formed in similar ways — for example, "c," "a," "d," and "g" all start with the same curved stroke — and practise those families together?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Conceptual
- Subject
- English
- Domain
- Handwriting & Transcription
- Age range
- Ages 5–6
Standards