Right tools help make writing fun for children

She is on a mission to help youngsters to love writing by not only providing specially sized tools for the job but also making it fun.

The mother of two from Dudley co-founded Love Writing Co. which specialises in making pencils that are a perfect fit for a child’s hand.

She believes that because they are more comfortable to hold, children have better control of the pencil making writing easier and more enjoyable.

The business, which she runs with London-based business partner Mark Sherwood, was inspired by her own experience of finding writing difficult when she was younger as well as hearing her own children complain about their hands hurting when using a pencil.

“I was a single parent with two children. I didn’t have excess funds to source writing products but I tried to find things to help my children to write.

“Both my children struggled with writing and my son would even say ‘I hate writing’. I thought there must be something better out there to help children with their writing but I couldn’t find it.

“The thought had always been at the back of my mind. Fast forward a few years and I got talking to Mark, he has two children, and he’d had a similar experience.

“I want children to love writing because if a child enjoys an activity they will want to do it,” Surlender tells Weekend.

They launched Love Writing Co. in September last year and offer a range of writing and erasable colouring pencils that are arergonomically designed and sized for children to help them learn to write.

They have also created fun and engaging handwriting books which they say make it easier and faster to learn to write.

“A lot of companies create writing pencils or books but nobody puts them together as a complete package to help them learn and to make it fun.

“The inspiration has come from a desire to help children and make a difference. I have so many friends who have struggled and children as young as one are picking up phones before a pencil. Children have their first experience of writing and we believe their first teacher is a parent. We create products for home learning and home schooling,” explains Surlender.

Their writing and erasable colour pencils are available in two sizes three to five years and six to nine years.

They have been designed with a wider diameter so they are easier to hold, a softer core so the pencil moves smoothly across the page and a hexagonal shape to encourage the correct tripod grip.

Classroom studies have shown that 95 per cent of children have improved writing ability, eight in 10 write faster and 87 per cent have improved grip and control as a result of using the specially sized and designed pencils. As a result, the Love Writing Co. has also been given assured status by the British Dyslexia Association.

Surlender is also keen to encourage children to use their writing skills in different ways such as thank you and birthday cards through their traceable kits.

“Children are losing the art of saying thank you to the people who have gifted them things. People love to receive a handwritten note and will remember it more than an email.

“With a handwritten card, children are learning to write, they are learning to be appreciative and show gratitude all while they are having fun,” she says.

Since schools closed their doors, they’ve been supporting parents looking for ways to keep kids entertained and educated by offer free weekly activity sheets to download from their website. These include thank you posters for NHS staff and key workers.

“Both parents and teachers are doing an incredible job at this really difficult time,” says Surlender.

“As an independently-owned business within our first nine months of trading this has had a huge impact on us.

“Even so, we’re committed to helping in any way that we can and as well as continuing to provide our handwriting and alphabet books, we’ve invested in producing as much free to download material as we can and will continue to do so every week for the full length of the closures

“Our aim is to create fun and inventive ways for kids to put their learning into practice whether through word searches, cards or number games. We know that resources are limited and want to do anything we can to support both teachers and parents during this unprecedented time,” she adds.

Earlier this year Love Writing Co. donated age-appropriate stationery including pencils, colouring pencils and learning to write packs to national charity The Buddy Bag Foundation.

Buddy Bags are distributed to children entering emergency accommodation, with an aim of restoring a sense of safety and security in their lives.

“We’re a Black Country company and we are all about supporting the community and helping other charities.

“There’s lots more we want to do in the future. We may only be a small company but we want to make a difference,” says Surlender.

They have been delighted with the response to their products from parents and especially enjoy hearing how youngsters are making progress with their writing.

“For us the most rewarding thing is having that amazing feedback, engaging with parents and listening to what they want and how we can help them,” says Surlender.

*The free downloads can be found at www.lovewritingco.com