Video: Small Group Handwriting Practice
I do it, we do it together in the sky, they do it on their own
As you know, I like to teach kindergarten students to form letters correctly and neatly from the beginning. It is much more work to “undo” students’ poor handwriting (and often impossible) than it is to just teach them to write properly in the first place. It is not fair to send students to first grade and hope and assume that the next teacher will be the one to teach them how to write correctly. Trust me; I’ve been a first grade teacher.
If you’ve been doing it like this—putting the responsibility on the first grade teachers—don’t beat yourself up. Perhaps you didn’t realize that most kindergarten students can learn to write neatly and form letters correctly; maybe you thought it was developmentally not possible. Or maybe you aren’t in a school or a position that values nice handwriting or allows you to build in time for daily writing practice. Or maybe you’ve seen student writing samples on popular kindergarten blogs or in popular writing curriculums that show students mixing capital and lowercase letters, not setting letters on the line, not making letters the correct height, and not erasing and fixing their mistakes. Whatever the reasons, I am here with Busy Bee Kindergarten to try and help show you how you can make beautiful handwriting a reality with your students.
I know most of you have heard about my letter formation cues ad nauseam; however, if you are not familiar with them, familiarize yourself right away. They are the secret weapon to getting students off to a great start with their handwriting. The post that I linked to also has many suggestions for teaching handwriting. I am going to reiterate them here for all the new subscribers who may not have read the earlier post in its entirety.
You might want to use your own cues; just make sure they are truly helpful in explicitly stating how to write each individual letter. Also, it takes a while for these to become a part of a teacher’s memory and speaking. If need be, keep the sheet handy and carry it around with you.
Start with Proper Name Writing
We work on writing first names for the first six weeks of school. Students write their name three or four times each day and for each instance it is a supervised practice. They are with me or my aide in small groups and we teach them how to form each letter in their name correctly. They also write their name every day on their drawing/writing paper and receive feedback and instruction. Whether they have three letters in their first name or 11, they will learn enough to implicitly know the basic rules about penmanship: you almost always start at the top, you almost always go left to right, and you don’t pick your pencil up unless necessary.
Teach Handwriting All Day Long
Second, after the first six weeks—when students can handle learning about more than one thing at a time—I incorporate letter formation reminders into many parts of our day. When we do the daily Name Game, I model how to write each letter by saying the cue (and my pen writes the letter exactly as my mouth is telling it to). A few months into the school year, when students know a lot of the cues and can say them by themselves, I’ll say, “You tell me how to write it. My pen won’t move until you tell it what to do.” Or, I’ll say, “Boss me around. Tell me what to do.” If I’m writing during phonics time or writing time or whenever, I will sneak in letter formation cues as long as doing so does not take away from the main focus of the lesson.
Hold Students Accountable
Third, I am steadfast in expecting students to write correctly (to the best of their ability) at all times. Anytime they write their name, my aide or I glance at it. We say things like, “Where’s your tall C?” “p is a hang-down letter,” “r should be the same size as your e,” and “You didn’t make your f the way I taught you.” Students are not allowed to put away or turn in work without showing it to me first. They know I will not accept it if they did not try their hardest including the way they wrote their name. If my students do written work at the independent center during workshop time, they must show it to me immediately upon the close of that activity. They know that if their writing is messy (compared to their usual) I will ask them to go back and fix it. Most students do not risk it; they just usually try their best. And that is how good habits are born.
Students Write Often
Students get many opportunities to practice writing in my classroom. On a typical February 2021 day, for example, students 1) wrote some -ar words during the phonics block, 2) practiced writing high frequency words during the independent center, 3) wrote math facts at the aide’s center during workshop, 4) wrote CVC words at my center during workshop, and 5) did the typical 25 minutes of writing time.
Teach as many skills and concepts as you can via handwriting. Doing so will cover a lot of topics while at the same time building up students’ writing abilities and stamina. Be careful about falling into the trap of having students write in sand, use magnetic letters to practice spelling, and other similar activities. Every time they do such activities it is a missed opportunity for learning how to write with a pencil on paper.
Observe Students’ Letter Formation and Provide Immediate Letter Formation
Last, I rarely allow students to write without observing them and/or providing immediate feedback. We write at my teacher table during small group instruction and we write together during whole group writing time, with me constantly circulating the room to make sure students are forming letters correctly. If students write at the independent center, they must bring their work to me right away when the center ends and I will check to ensure they are writing to the best of their ability. If they write me a note at home and they mix in capital letters or don’t form the letters right, I will call them out on it and tell them that they must always write their best, no matter where they are.
Practice makes permanent, so do all that you can to ensure that your students are practicing correctly.
Write Right, Right From the Start
Again, it is crucial that students learn to form letters correctly right from the get go. Don’t let kids write however they want to, thinking that you’ll get to proper letter formation later in the year. If kids are writing often—as they should be—the way they form letters will become automatic very quickly. That is why you must teach them the correct formation immediately, continue to model it and reinforce it on a daily basis, and check every day to ensure that they are trying their hardest to apply what you teach them.
This is not the only post and video about how to teach handwriting; there will be many throughout the school year. To see them all and much more, consider the paid subscription.
Putting a star under the letters printed correctly has been a game changer for me!! Wow! I can’t believe that just adding that to my routine is the little incentive that they needed. Thank you!!!
Any tips for getting students to say the cues aloud? My inclusion class is a little over 50% speech, and they just don’t sing songs or talk/answer questions!