Copy work is one of the oldest and most effective writing techniques, and at this age it is incredibly simple: pick a sentence from a book they love, and have them copy it.

What To Do

1. Pick a picture book your child loves.
2. Choose one short sentence (3-5 words to start).
3. Write it at the top of the page in clear, large print.
4. Have them copy it underneath.

That is it. Ten minutes, done.

Good Books for Copy Work

• Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Bill Martin Jr. ("I see a red bird looking at me.")
• Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown ("Goodnight room. Goodnight moon.")
• The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle ("On Monday he ate through one apple.")
• Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak ("Let the wild rumpus start!")
• Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss ("I do not like green eggs and ham.")

Use whatever they are already reading and loving. The familiarity makes the copy work feel connected to something they care about.

Why This Works

Copy work builds handwriting skills, letter recognition, spacing awareness, and an intuitive sense of how sentences look, all without requiring them to generate original content. It is low stress and high reward. They are practicing the mechanics of writing while the creative pressure is zero.

Pro Tips

• Start with 3-word sentences and work up to 5-7 words over weeks.
• Let them choose which sentence to copy when possible. Ownership matters.
• Use the same book for a whole week, picking a different sentence each day. The repetition of the book context helps.
• Do copy work right after reading the book together. The connection between reading and writing clicks faster that way.