Mystery Pictures for Letter and Number Reversals

Reversing letters means your child writes certain letters (or numbers) backwards or upside down. This is sometimes referred to as mirror writing. It´s different from transposing letters, which means switching the order of letters.

The most common letter reversal is b and d, when the child writes a b for a d or vice versa. Another common reversal is p and q. An example of an upside-down reversal is m for w.

Reversing letters or mirror writing isn´t necessarily a sign of dyslexia. Some kids with dyslexia have trouble with it, but many don´t. In fact, most kids who reverse letters before age 7 end up not having dyslexia.

For older kids who continue to reverse letters, there are a few other potential causes. A child might reverse letters because of a poor memory for how to form letters. Another possible cause is visual processing issues. In this case, a child might have trouble identifying how images are different (visual discrimination) or which direction they face (visual directionality).

There´s no downside to helping kids learn to write their letters correctly, at any age. Even if your child doesn´t have dyslexia or other difficulty, there´s no harm.

This workbook includes puzzles to help children master the orientation of the letters and numbers. These activities are best suited for children who are at least eight years old.

1. Student Objectives

Students will practice identifying and distinguishing the letters and numbers.

2. Teacher Set Up

Print the pages you think will benefit your students the most.

3. Activity Summary

STEP 1 / Introduce

Explain what the student will be doing in this activity. You could say, “In this activity, we´re going to be searching for the hidden letter b.”

STEP 2 / Model

Show the student how to scan the mystery picture from left to right, searching for and coloring hidden letters. You could say, “Ok, let´s get searching for bs. I´m going to start by placing my pencil under the first letter in the row. As I move my pencil along the row, I´m looking carefully for letters that go ‘big line down, up and over.´ There´s one! [Color it.]”

STEP 3 / Guided Practice

Help the student complete the modeled task. Offer corrections as necessary. You could say, “Why don´t you finish this line for me. Can you find them all?”

STEP 4 / Practice

Continue to the next line, and complete the whole puzzle. At the end of the task allow the student to check with the solved puzzles sheets provided.

Students love to do puzzles and color. No matter what time of day it is or what part of the school year it is, they are always so excited when they get the opportunity to do a puzzle or color. Do you have students like this?

Students can check their work by spotting something off with their picture or by checking the answer sheets when they feel they are done with their work. By solving these puzzles students will work through their letter reversal difficulties.

Download and print the Mystery Picture pages . Use the password worksheets.site to open the PDF file.

Similar Worksheets

Mystery Pictures

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