R/1: Handwriting Heroes

Welcome to our handwriting page!

It is really important that you learn to form your letters correctly, otherwise it becomes really tricky when we come to do joined up letters later on. On this page you will find videos and power points to help you learn how to do amazing handwriting! We have used a programme called 'Handwriting Heroes' but have adapted some of the letters to fit in with the handwriting programme we follow at Churchill.

Please upload photos/videos to Dojo as we can't wait to see your handwriting!

(Please feel free to explore the 'Handwriting Hero' links on each page, but first follow Mrs Webber's tutorials as some letter formations may be slightly different and letters may be in different families.)

Please note:
The 5 groups (Cannon Pops, Sky Divers, Bouncers, Surfers, Skiers) included here are the 'families' of letters, not writing groups we have 'set' children in. We trialled the programme with a small number of children before Christmas and it had been our intention to roll out across R/1 from January - lockdown has altered the way we are doing it but we were determined to give it a go regardless!

All children will begin with 'Cannon Pops' and continue practising until they earn their 'shield'. Once staff have awarded the shield, individuals can move onto the next family.

We appreciate that many children will journey through some families faster than others, and 'Cannon Pops' may appear super simple, however formation is a cornerstone to writing and we need to be crystal clear that children are not taking 'wrong turns' (literally and figuratively!) as these will hinder their writing in later years.

Handwriting sessions should be short and SUPERVISED please. Mrs Webber's videos show where to begin/ finish/ letter size/ placement on the line/ a multitude of other vital facts. MANY MANY children are currently forming letters in the wrong direction (clockwise rather than anti) and through a series of touches to the page (rather than one smooth movement). To relearn now may be tricky and a little confusing at first (after all, children believe their existing script works and is good enough) however it will be painfully difficult to alter if left another two or three years.

It is very typical for children to learn a variation on letter formation, due to self-taught assumption when they first encounter words on a page - structured teaching and encouragement little and often should help them to redress any issues and show a marked improvement they themselves can be proud of.

Those individuals in Year 1 who are already using a fully functional cursive script are fine to continue with this, however should still undertake the tasks and earn shields please. Through the formation sessions, they will smooth out their letter/line placement if nothing else (and we know all children still need this!).