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Follow the Numbat

Writing lower-case letters in NSW Foundation Style: where to start, which way to go, when to lift

Ages 4-7 Letters and phonics Free, no sign-up

Play Follow the Numbat More in The Rustly Bush

How it plays

Your child puts a finger on the numbat and follows the path to write a letter, the way NSW schools teach it (NSW Foundation Style): starting at the dot, going the right way, and lifting for the next line when there is one. The numbat will not go backwards, so a letter can only be written the right way round. At first the numbat walks each letter to show how it goes; as your child gets confident the arrows fade and the letter grows paler. Letters come in families that move the same way: straight down (l i t j), down and over (n m r h), round (c o a d) and so on. With a keyboard, holding Space walks the numbat along the line.

What it's for

Writing lower-case letters in NSW Foundation Style: where to start, which way to go, when to lift. Your child sets the difficulty on the first screen — how fast things move, how many there are — so the game meets them where they are rather than deciding they aren't good enough.

There is no score to lose, no timer running out on them, and no way to fail. A level ends when it's won. That's the only way it ends.

What it practises

Forming letters. Starting each letter in the right place and going the right way (NSW Foundation Style).
AC9EFLY08 (English, Foundation); AC9E1LY08 (English, Year 1)

The codes are from the Early Years Learning Framework V2.0 (for three- to five-year-olds) and the Australian Curriculum v9 (Foundation to Year 2). Each links to the official wording. Every skill, and the games for it.

What it costs, and what we collect

Nothing, and nothing. There is no account, no advertising and no tracking of any kind. Which games have been played is remembered on your own device and is never sent anywhere. The full version is here, and it's short.

A numbat went walking one bright sunny day, And each little footprint was showing the way. Start at the dot, then go down, round and back — Now every good letter's a numbat's own track!

Where it lives

Follow the Numbat lives in The Rustly Bush — letters and phonics. It works on a phone, a tablet or a classroom screen, and once it's been opened it keeps working with no signal at all.