St Saviours Primary School Handwriting and Presentation Policy - PDF document

St Saviour’s Primary School Handwriting and Presentation Policy Expectations and Guidelines Date: Summer 2016 Review: Summer 2019 1

For every child to have a fluent, legible, cursive • handwriting style. What is the To ensure consistency in the teaching of • aim ? handwriting at Thomas Buxton Primary School. To raise expectations and thus the standard of • presentation at Thomas Buxton Primary School. Why Continuous Cursive? ‘Continuous Cursive’ is the most widely recommended handwriting style. Its most important feature is that each letter is formed without taking the pencil off the paper – and consequently, each word is formed in one, flowing movement. Another key feature of this system is that letters are always formed from the bottom (on the line). The key advantages to this system are: By making each letter in one movement, children’s hands develop a ‘physical memory’ of it, • making it easier to produce the correct shape; Because letters and words flow from left to right, children are less likely to reverse letters • which are typically difficult (like b/d or p/q); There is a clearer distinction between capital letters and lower case; • The continuous flow of writing ultimately improves speed and spelling. • (Includes guidance from the British Dyslexia Association) 2

The foundations of handwriting in the EYFS It takes a long time for children to develop the physical control and coordination required to sit at a desk and write. Early Years practice must involve lots of opportunities for movement through: self-chosen active play, particularly outdoors; • smaller-scale play-based activities, such as making things, puppetry or sit-down games involving • motor control; patterned activities, such as action songs, PE and dancing; • opportunities for mark-making in various ways, including drawing and painting; • activities involving hand-eye coordination, such as using tools, threading, jigsaws and so on. • Physical Activity Once children have reasonable control of body movement and hand-eye coordination, the key to • good handwriting is sound letter formation This does not mean worksheets! • Children need to start with large scale motor movements: writing with a stick or finger in the • sand tray; using paints, chalks or big felt pens to make colourful collages; and sky-writing the shapes, using their whole arm, right from the shoulder Introduce each letter with big movements from the shoulder, using the whole arm; • Next move to finger-writing in the air; • When the children have the hand-control to do it confidently, they can write on wide-lined • paper (EYFS) gradually moving on to more regular-lined paper. 3

Dealing with difficulties If some children lag behind others in motor control, let them join in with large scale movements • only Provide plenty of opportunities for manipulative play (lacing, threading, cut-and-stick, • construction toys etc.) to develop hand-eye coordination Ensure these children get extra help to catch up with handwriting as their motor skills develop • Identify left-handed children as soon as possible. Give extra help, modelling all practice • movements and letter formations again for them using your own left hand (do this well away from the rest of the class!) Keep an eye open for children who hold their pencils awkwardly. For those who can’t remember • the best way to hold the pencil, provide a pencil grip or chunky triangular pencil for guidance. Putting it into practice In Shared Writing demonstrate how to apply handwriting in words and sentences • Choose sentences that include the sounds/letters/spelling patterns of the moment, and give a • running commentary as you use the handwriting (linked to phonics and spelling) to create words and sentences As they become more competent, give an occasional sentence as a dictation • Developing an effective pencil grip The pencil should be gripped comfortably between forefinger and thumb with the third finger • below to steady it The thumb and forefinger should also be able to move slightly – this is known as ‘froggy legs’ • If you pick up a pencil which is lying on the table in front of you with its nib towards you in line • with your forearm, you instinctively pick it up in the correct grip 4

Posture When writing, a child’s feet should be comfortably flat on the ground and his/her forearm • resting on the table The non-writing hand should rest on the paper to steady it • Seat left-handers so the movement of their arm does not clash with the right arm movement of • a right-handed child All children should have a clear view of the board on which letter formation is demonstrated, and • should not have to twist in their seat to watch or copy Choice of paper For the direct teaching of handwriting children will be expected to work on lines to ensure they • understand the orientation of the letter on the line In EYFS and into Year 1 handwriting can be done on wide-lined paper to help with letter • formation From Year 2 onwards, children will practise their handwriting in their handwriting books • Guidance for Left-handers Left-handed children should sit on the left-hand side of double desks or tables • They must be able to rest their left forearms on the edge of the desk • The book or paper must slope in line with the left forearm • As writing is completed down the page, the paper must be moved away from the body in the same • line The aim is to keep the left arm in much the same position at all times to avoid the elbow being • cramped by the chest Moving the paper away from the body prevents writing becoming cramped at the foot of the page • The right hand must be used to control the movement of the page • The left hand should end up below the line of writing to avoid smudging and to give a clear view of • what is being written Children should be discouraged from hooking their left hand above the line of writing to avoid • smudging 5

Checklist for teachers If a child’s handwriting is to develop into a pleasing and consistent style, it is helpful to examine each piece of writing in light of the following criteria: Shape - Are all the letters formed and clear? • Joining - Are as many letters as possible joined consistently? • Slope - Is the slope of letters consistent? • Evenness - Are letters of a consistent and reasonable size? Capitals can be too big, tall letters • too tall, small letters too small Floating and Sinking - Do letters sit on the line? Words sometimes float above or sink below • the writing line. This happens because the writing hand is not moving steadily across the page. Particular Letters - Which letters are really well formed? Which ones need careful rehearsal? • Handwriting at St Saviour’s It is an expectation that handwriting is explicitly taught, modelled and demonstrated 3-4 times • per week (along the lines of Shared teaching with adults providing running commentaries on their handwriting and feeding back to children) Our handwriting scheme aims to have children writing in cursive script from Year 1 • We teach letter formation using ‘entry’ and ‘exit’ strokes with all lower case letters beginning • on the line Individual letters are taught from Reception with an entry stroke and an exit stroke – these • strokes will form later joins Children should get used to hearing adults say things such as, ‘All lower case letters begin on • the line’, ‘Capitals are the only letters that never join’, ‘We start at the bottom of the line and go up to the top/halfway/down halfway’ etc. Capital letters are the only letters which do not join • Capital letters are formed from just below the top of the line to the bottom of the line • All ascenders go up to just below the top line, apart from the letter t • All descenders go halfway down below the line • All lower case letters go up halfway between the bottom and top lines • We loop letters to help children’s flow of writing • We teach letters in sets and then as joins • It is expected that adults model the school’s handwriting style on the white board, on displays • and when marking children’s work 6