Handwriting

Teachers introduce students to joined letter strings when modelling or discussing their spelling. This reflects the links between letter sounds in phonics and spelling and fits in with the children’s process of language development. Joining letters for “together sounds” means that these sounds are reflected in a “together shape”, e.g. ch, sh, th, wh, ck, qu, ph, oo, ee, ea, oa, ai,
Different joins should be very carefully taught in order to promote a fluent style. The majority of children should reach this stage by the end of P 4. Lined guides can be used when the children are making books or writing final drafts.
The different joins are:
1- Diagonal joins to letters with ascenders eg. ab, ul, it
2- Diagonal joins to letters without ascenders eg. ai,ar,un
3- Horizontal joins to letters with ascenders eg. ol, wh, ot
4- Horizontal joins to letters without ascenders eg. ou, vi, wi
Recommended practice: at least 2 x 15 minutes per week.
In P2 to P5 all students learn the same letter type: Nelson. For this age level, the difference between Nelson and D’Nealian is minimal.
From P5 to P8 the students choose whether they prefer to use the D’Nealian letter format or the Nelson format. We expect that the majority will continue writing Nelson since that is the format taught in previous grades. The choice of the handwriting can depend on the format used in previous schools as well as the preference of the parent. Both letter formats can be taught by the teacher in
the same handwriting lesson, alternating instruction and feedback for the two different groups in the class. In P6 to P8 handwriting will be taught through instruction, practice and specific feedback.