Lines that match our worksheets
The lines here are the same ones used on every PencilPlum handwriting and tracing sheet, so children see one set of lines all year.More handwriting practice
For letters to trace, use alphabet tracing; for your own sentences, handwriting practice.In the New Zealand Curriculum
- First 6 monthsNew entrants are taught to form letters and numbers correctly, and to spell words by breaking them into sounds.
- Year 1Neat letters and numbers with a good pencil grip, and writing simple sentences planned by talking first.
- Year 3Sloped letters and numbers written correctly, easily and without thinking about each one.
- Years 4–5Building the stamina to write several paragraphs, then longer pieces.
The English curriculum asks new entrants to think about who will read their writing and Year 1 children to talk through what they will write first. A journal page fits that order: draw, talk about the picture, then write a sentence using the sounds they know.
Children usually move to smaller lines as their letters shrink and begin to slope in Year 3.
Summarised in our own words from the New Zealand Curriculum: English, Years 0–6 (2025), and the Ministry of Education’s year-by-year guide for parents and whānau.
