Developmentally a child doesn't really (usually) get the hang of writing until in about grade 1 or 2. I'm not a qualified teacher yet but i worked in an Early Learning Centre for 5 years and heard the teachers there console many parents. We had children from 0 - 5 in our centre and very few could legibly write their names. The ones that could (from what I observed) were also proficient at many other fine motor skills. If I was you I would simply encourage a love of drawing. These skills are best learnt at the child's pace too Believe me, I had a mother who was very determined that I become a top mathematician so she drilled me constantly and it always ended it tears. To this day I have a bit of a psychological issue with maths. It saddens me now that looking back my mum seemed to ignore the fact that I was the most literate child in my year... I was an excellent reader for instance but never once did I receive any praise for this infact I was told to "get out of your room... go outside... it's not healthy to read all day". She actually used to complain that I read too much Is there really such a thing??? Anyhow, this isn't about me.

Getting back to what I heard at the ELC: first at foremost has to come a natural curiosity and therefore a love of learning. Like Rory said: through play a child's natural curiosity will be stimulated and after a while the child will require and demand a more complex set of tools in which to grow their understanding of the world. Reading and writing are tools that your DD will naturally seek when she is ready. Maths will be another tool that will follow too. If you look at a child's learning holistically then you will see that everything is interlinked and lots of skills are dependant on another set of skills coming first. The Steiner and Regio Emilia learning philosophies (amongst others) acknowledge that learning is stronger when child-led. I also believe this to be true.

I hope this hasn't come across as a lecture darl. I know that your intentions are good Maybe just go out and buy your DD a whole array of mark-making tools... chalks, crayons, fine textas, paints and let her explore and master the first step of writing: mark-making. You say that she can make a circle... that's great and more than most children her age are capable of doing. Maybe instead of showing her how to do something just sit next to her and doodle on a piece of paper... make lots of marks... zig zags, loops, squiggly lines.... don't show her how, just let her observe. When I worked with children I was told never to teach a child how to draw... I could make my own marks but not to impose them on a child because my proficiency can so easily discourage a child which often leads to anger and frustration that they can't do it straight away. The time to be instructed for educational purposes is a long way off... some say that often it is never necessary if the child maintains enough natural curiosity to instigate the learning process themselves. The best time to instruct is when they ASK. A willing brain is always going to be more receptive. Anyhow... I could babble on about this all day... bit of a passion of mine. I hope at least I provided some food for thought