Hallie likes everything about school except handwriting, but her new teacher and a project with butterflies helps her like that too. Includes tips for parents to help their children with learning.
The author states that the purpose of his book is to teach anyone to write legibly and fluently from a movement point of view. It is not concerned with grammar or style but with penmanship itself.
The future of handwriting is anything but certain. Its history, however, shows how much it has affected culture and civilization for millennia. In the digital age of instant communication, handwriting is less necessary than ever before, and indeed fewer and fewer schoolchildren are being taught how to write in cursive. Signatures--far from John Hancock’s elegant model--have become scrawls. In her recent and widely discussed and debated essays, Anne Trubek argues that the decline and even elimination of handwriting from daily life does not signal a decline in civilization, but rather the next stage in the evolution of communication. Now, in The History and Uncertain Future of Handwriting, Trubek uncovers the long and significant impact handwriting has had on culture and humanity--from the first recorded handwriting on the clay tablets of the Sumerians some four thousand years ago and the invention of the alphabet as we know it, to the rising value of handwritten manuscripts today. Each innovation over the millennia has threatened existing standards and entrenched interests: Indeed, in ancient Athens, Socrates and his followers decried the very use of handwriting, claiming memory would be destroyed; while Gutenberg’s printing press ultimately overturned the livelihood of the monks who created books in the pre-printing era. And yet new methods of writing and communication have always appeared. Establishing a novel link between our deep past and emerging future, Anne Trubek offers a colorful lens through which to view our shared social experience.
This fascinating and wide-ranging book charts developments in the teaching and study of handwriting over the course of the twentieth century. The book shows how changing educational policies, economic forces and inevitable technological advance have combined to alter the priorities and form of handwriting. This 'long and sometimes sorry story' tells also of the sheer pain and hard work of children forced to follow the style of the day, and of the reformers who have sought to simplify the teaching and learning of handwriting over the years. Illustrated throughout with examples from copybooks and personal handwriting from across the world, the book is a compelling historical record of techniques, styles and methods.
′The book fulfils its purpose admirably...[It] should be required reading for all Primary and Secondary headteachers - they lead the policy making in schools′ - Journal of the Writing Equipment Society `This excellent new text from the handwriting specialist Rosemary Sassoon will be of great interest to secondary school SENCOs and a range of other staff supporting children who are experiencing difficulties with handwriting′ - SENCO Update A considerable proportion of pupils leave primary school unable to write well enough to deal with the demands of secondary school. This innovative new book aims to help teachers and SENCOs to work alongside pupils to help them address their own difficulties. The book has three parts: Part one explores the various issues which underpin any discussion of handwriting: letterforms; the pros and cons of handwriting models; how to help children write at speed; writing posture; pens and pen hold; left-handedness; talking to parents; and some of the common causes of handwriting problems. Part two presents a series of examples of handwriting in photocopiable form, aimed principally at the pupils but with full teacher support, designed to show pupils a range of handwriting problems, helping them them to self-diagnose and work towards improvement. Each page offers practical tips and help for pupils with difficulties. All of the photocopiable material is also provided in electronic format on the companion website. Part three sets out a diagnostic technique for teachers to follow, outlining three approaches to tackling handwriting problems: a quick, small-group assessment; providing one-to-one help; and working with a whole class. Each approach is outlined in detail, offering advice on effective observation, procedures to follow in giving appropriate practical help to pupils, and how to assess progress. Part three also offers guidelines for designing checklists, and the role of surveys and research. Authoritative, wide-ranging and full of practical help, this book will be particularly useful for secondary teachers, secondary SENCOs and teaching support staff. Rosemary Sassoon is an independent consultant and lecturer, based in Sevenoaks, Kent. She is the author of Handwriting: The Way to Teach it, Paul Chapman Publishing, 2003.