Follow the Numbat
Writing lower-case letters in NSW Foundation Style: where to start, which way to go, when to lift
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. It adapts as your child plays: after a few rounds that go well it steps up a little, and after a couple of hard ones it quietly steps back. The level number only ever goes up.
There is no score to lose and no way to fail. A wrong move is met with a gentle nudge, and a level ends when it's won.
Away from the screen: Rainbow writing
About two minutes, with things most homes have.
- Write a big letter on paper in pencil.
- Your child traces over it in three different crayons, starting at the dot each time.
- Say the way it goes as you trace: "down, back up, round".
Three questions to ask while they play
- Where does this letter start?
- Which way does the pencil go first?
- When do we lift the pencil?
Play together
Things to say or ask
- Where does this letter start?
- Slow and careful. Numbat waits for you.
- Which way does your finger go next?
Taking turns on one device: One player traces; the other says the steps out loud ('start at the top, down, lift'). Swap each letter.
Talk-about cards: a question a day for a week, for the car or the dinner table. Print them, or read them from your phone.
If they find it hard
Tap "Watch the numbat" and trace in the air along with it first.
A sheet to print
Print the Follow the Numbat sheet
One A4 page, in black and white or colour.
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 children from birth to five) 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.
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.
Updated