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Year 2

Pre-cursive formation of e, s and f

I can form the pre-cursive letters e, s and f.

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New
New
Year 2

Pre-cursive formation of e, s and f

I can form the pre-cursive letters e, s and f.

Link copied to clipboard

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The pre-cursive letters e, s and f all have a lead in and a lead out
  2. The pre-cursive letter f has a loop as the lead in and a loop as the lead out
  3. The letters e and s are x-height letters
  4. The pre-cursive letter f has an ascender and a descender

Keywords

  • Lead in - the stroke or line that guides us into starting a letter

  • Lead out - the stroke or line that guides us to smoothly finish a letter

  • X-height letter - letters that sit between the baseline and the x-height line

  • Loop - rounded or curving elements that contribute to the overall shape of a letter

Common misconception

The two loops on the pre-cursive letter f can be challenging for children at first.

Lots of modelling and opportunities to trace the grey examples will support correct formation.


To help you plan your year 2 english lesson on: Pre-cursive formation of e, s and f, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Using a visual of the f 'looping their hands around' to join the next letter can help remind children to form the loop.
Teacher tip

Content guidance

  • Risk assessment required - physical activity

Supervision

Adult supervision required

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Select the correct formation of the lower case letter e in print.
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q2.
Select the correct formation of the lower case letter s in print.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q3.
Select the correct formation of the lower case letter f in print.
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q4.
Select the correct formation of the pre-cursive letter o.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q5.
Select the correct formation of the pre-cursive letter g.
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q6.
Select the correct formation of the pre-cursive letter q.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
An image in a quiz
Q4 image 2 correct pc o Q4 image 3 incorrect pc o Q5 image 1 incorrect pc g Q5 image 3 incorrect pc g Q6 image 1 incorrect pc q Q6 image 2 Correct pre-cursive letter q

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