Handwriting
Handwriting
Handwriting
My lessons include:
- An initial handwriting assessment to identify specific challenges
- Support with posture, positioning, pressure, and pencil grip
- Letter formation and transition to joined/cursive writing
- Fine and gross motor skills exercises
- Strategies for speeding up legibly
- Guidance on appropriate writing tools and ergonomics
- Tailored homework and practice activities
- Regular progress updates to build confidence
My handwriting approach is grounded by the recommendations of the National Handwriting Association and Amanda McLeod, Author of the Scholastic Handwriting scheme.
Typing
Handwriting
Handwriting
My lessons include:
- An initial assessment of current typing habits and goals
- Guidance on correct posture, chair positioning, and wrist ergonomics
- Proper touch-typing technique and home-row finger placement
- Exercises focused on building core accuracy and minimising errors
- Strategies for gradually increasing typing speed and fluency
- Engaging, age-appropriate practice software and games
- Tailored homework and practice routines
- Regular progress tracking and feedback
My typing approach is grounded by the recommendations of the National Handwriting Association and Amanda McLeod, Typing Lecturer.
Why Handwriting Still Matters
Handwriting is more than a way of getting words onto paper. Research suggests that children who handwrite tend to show better conceptual understanding of what they are learning. Handwriting also draws on listening, working memory and executive function, so the brain is doing real work as the child writes. Typing is quick and often verbatim, whereas handwriting makes children process ideas as they go. Handwritten work also tends to show stronger compositional quality.
Handwriting isn’t a cure-all. It isn’t linked to reading ability, and it doesn’t automatically make a child a better speller. For children with SEND or SpLDs, it can also be a real barrier. Many struggle to keep their writing legible at speed, and for some, handwriting is slower and more tiring because of lower processing speed and working memory. Unreadable work can also be marked down simply because it is hard to read. The aim is to build handwriting as a strength while making sure it doesn’t hold back a child’s ideas.
Benefits of Strong Handwriting
- Better understanding and recall of what is being learned
- Active use of working memory and executive function
- Legible work that is easier to read and fairly assessed
- A skill still needed for exams, where GCSE students must handwrite at around 20-30 words per minute
Benefits of Typing
- Finish homework faster
- Catch mistakes easily: Reading your own typed words makes it much easier to spot and fix typos.
- Free up your brainpower: When your fingers know where to go automatically, your mind can focus on creative ideas and great storytelling instead of hunting for letters.
- Essential life and career skill you’ll use at school and in any job when you grow up!
- Boosts self-esteem and confidence.
