Choosing a Stylus for Children's Tracing Practice on iPad

Apple’s support page Apple Pencil compatibility lists four models, Apple Pencil Pro, Apple Pencil (USB-C), Apple Pencil (2nd generation) and Apple Pencil (1st generation), and which iPads each one works with. Even within Apple Pencil, which one you can use depends on your iPad.

When you set a child up to trace letters on an iPad, the pen is often the first question. Is a finger enough? Should you buy an Apple Pencil? Will a cheap stylus do? This post covers how the main types differ and what to look at when choosing one for a child.

Finger first, or pen first?

If a child cannot yet hold a pencil properly, starting with a finger is fine. With a finger, the child is not busy holding a pen and can focus on the direction and order of the strokes. Following the model line with a finger is a good enough first step toward learning a letter’s shape with the body.

One good time to move to a pen is when the child starts writing with a pencil on paper. Holding a pen on the screen too practises the way the fingertips support a pen. How to teach pencil grip itself is in How to Teach Pencil Grip.

You do not have to choose one. A child can learn a new letter’s shape with a finger, and write familiar letters with a pen.

Types of pen

Pens for the iPad fall roughly into three groups.

Apple Pencil. Apple’s own pen. It has a fine tip and senses tilt, and every model except the USB-C one also senses pressure. It has palm rejection, so a hand resting on the screen is less likely to register. As mentioned above, though, which model works depends on the iPad. Check your iPad on the compatibility page first.

Logitech Crayon. A pen made by Logitech using Apple Pencil technology. The product page says it works with all iPads from 2018 and later. Its body is flat and fairly thick, shaped like a crayon. It is designed to survive a 1.2 m (4 ft) drop, has palm rejection, and changes line width when you tilt it. It does not sense pressure. Logitech presents it as a pen for learning at home and in the classroom.

Rubber-tip and disc-tip styluses. The inexpensive styluses with a rubber dome or a clear disc at the tip. To the screen they look like a finger, and they respond the same way a finger does. They work on iPhone as well as iPad.

What to look at for a child

Thickness and shape. A slightly thicker pen with a clear place for the fingers is often easier for a small hand than a thin one. It is the same idea as using a triangular or chunky pencil when learning to write on paper. Round pens roll off tables, so a flat body or a clip that stops rolling makes life easier with children.

Weight. A heavy pen gets tiring. If your child can hold it comfortably in one hand and wave it around, it is probably fine.

Tip. In tracing, seeing the model line matters. A thick tip covers the model line right where the child is writing. Fine-tipped pens such as Apple Pencil and Logitech Crayon have an advantage here.

Palms. Children tend to rest their whole hand on the screen while writing. A pen with palm rejection helps, though how well it works also depends on the app. With a rubber-tip stylus or a finger, the palm tends to count as a touch too, so it helps to build the habit of keeping the hand slightly raised.

Charging and power. Apple Pencil and Logitech Crayon need charging, so it can happen that the battery is flat just when your child wants to practise. Logitech Crayon turns itself off after 30 minutes of not being used. Rubber-tip styluses need no battery, so this is not a concern.

Drops. Children drop pens often. It is worth checking whether the tip can be replaced and whether replacement tips are easy to get.

Using an inexpensive stylus

You can trace with a rubber-tip stylus. On an iPhone, where Apple Pencil usually cannot be used, a finger or one of these styluses is the main choice.

There are a few things to watch. The thick tip tends to hide the model line. And as the rubber wears or dries out, the response gets patchy. If lines start breaking off partway, it is probably time to replace the tip.

When a pen keeps dropping out, the child feels, “I wrote it properly, but no line came out.” Some children start pressing too hard to make it respond. Instead of forcing a pen that responds badly, the child can write with a finger.

Some other brands advertise pens that work like an Apple Pencil. Whether such a pen works with your iPad model is something to check in the maker’s own information.

How the screen feels

A glass screen is slipperier than paper, and the tip glides. How writing on an iPad differs from paper is in Can You Practise Handwriting on an iPad?, and ways to change the feel with a screen film or a different tip are in How to Make Apple Pencil Feel More Like Paper.

Using StudyX Japanese Letters Tracer

StudyX Japanese Letters Tracer is an iPhone and iPad app for practising hiragana and katakana stroke order. Its store description says you can write with a finger, a stylus or a Logitech Crayon. When you choose a character, the model draws itself one stroke at a time in the correct order. Write one stroke and lift your finger or pen, and the model for the next stroke appears. It does not score or judge your lines.

Lines in the app are black and of a fixed width. Pressure does not change line width, so an expensive pressure-sensitive pen draws the same line as any other. The large, medium and small buttons on the practice screen change the size of the model character. With a thick-tipped stylus, starting at large makes the model line easier to see.

On iPhone it runs in landscape. It covers 142 characters: hiragana and katakana with their dakuten and handakuten forms. It is a one-time purchase with no ads and no in-app purchases. Tips for left-handed children are in Hiragana Practice for Left-Handed Children, and a first session is described in Getting Started with StudyX Japanese Letters Tracer.