Pre-writing skills are those skills that toddlers and preschoolers learn in a developmental sequence that help them develop hand muscles and dexterity to draw, copy and form letters for handwriting. Just like children need to walk before they can run, they need to master pre-writing skills before having legible and efficient handwriting by the time they go to school.Little hands should be exploring. Opening, closing, sticking, pasting, experimenting with paint, playdough, and different mediums.