We still practice handwriting at school with the children. Since having SMARTBoards I have been using the software to transform the way we teach it and the way we support the children.
I don’t think that handwriting is that important, what is written is more important to me – however the practice does encourage some structure, which can improve legibility.
Instead of just using the board to model the different joins (replace) I use the SMART Recorder to make a little movie of the joins as I model them and play them back, on a loop (tranform). Most IWB software (if any good!) has some sort of video screen capture tool. This allows me to step away from the board and go and support he children as they are working. As the class work they can easily look up and see the modelled join/word playing back on the board.
Before I explain how to do that, here is my routine for teaching any handwriting session. When we begin I remind the children about the 5 Ps.
- Position – I encourage them to think about the position they are in and where there book should be.
- Place – are they cramped or squashed? Make sure they have enough room on their table.
- Pen – I talk about the tripod grip, to watch out for the power grip where the wrist and lower arm is too tense and encourage the precision grip with a freely moving wrist etc.
- Posture – Can you feel the back of the chair in the lower back. Don’t be too upright and tense, be comfortable and relaxed.
- Peace – We all need some to do our best.
When talking about the actual joins or words I ask the children to trace them on a giant scale in the air with their fingers, talking about the movements as we complete them. I then ask them to do the same join on the palm of their hand. We repeat the join on our wrists where it is all tickly and then a final time on the back of someone sat next to them. This helps to feel the shape of the letters.
Megan’s Present / Hand by Aeioux
Attribution-NonCommercial License
Before the children go on to practice in their handwriting books, I complete a modelled example using the video recorder. Here is how you do it:
- Open you handwriting page. We created a template on a blank page with the guidelines that suited our scheme.
- Open your video screen capture application – we use SMART Recorder.
- Select just the small area that you are going to be writing in – not the whole screen or page.
- I find it really useful to have the join/word already written with it’s transparency turned down. So that it is just visible, allowing you to trace over the top. If you are doing a simple 2 or 3 letter join model it more than once.
- Hit record and complete the modelling of the join or word.
- Hit stop and save your capture using the join or word as the file name.
- Playback your movie and set it to loop. Move away from the front and sit with children as they are working. With different movies open in different small windows you can have multiple joins so that children can work at their own pace through the work.
This is a good example of how technology can transform what we have been doing for decades. It breathes life into a common task, providing the teacher the opportunity to support the children at the point of writing. If all we do is write them up on the IWB we are just replacing old ways, we may as well do it on a dry-wipe board, or even just a blackboard or find a cave wall and some berries. The video playback is there if the children need it – they don’t need to remember what was done, they can just watch it, that has transformed the way they learn the joins and the behaviours that support that learning.
Within my handwriting sessions there is that important balance between technology and other approaches, a blended take on it all. Tickling the words on our wrists or a partners back is just as important.
Have a look at letterjoin.co.uk
Don’t know if aware but we use http://www.kenttrustweb.org.uk/kentict/content/games/writingRepeater_v5.html
This is a really interesting use of the IWB, something I have not seen done before.
I discovered this old post of yours a few days ago and have just tried it in my classroom. It’s a great idea for me as I’m having to teach handwriting on a Monday and then children carry out the practice task in groups throughout the week (sadly) during guided reading time. It’s great to use the smart board recorder, to remind children of the key points.
Hi Liz – thanks for trying out the idea, I am so pleased to hear that it has helped. I found the same issue with Win Med Player. If you are working in SMART Notebook then (1) when it has finished saving you can check a little box to play. (2) Uncheck this as it will automatically go to Media Player. (3) Find the saved file on the computer, right click and “Open File with…” (4) Choose “Quicktime Player” if installed. (5) This will allow you to open and control multiple videos and is a simpler player than WMP.
If not on SMARTBoard just start from number 3, so long as the video capture saves to file. Have a play with Quicktime player to get used to it.
Hope this helps, let me know if you need anymore help and good luck with the rest of your training.
Hi Tom,
I'm training this year, and tried out using the Smart Recorder for a handwriting lesson this week, and it really helped the children, so thanks for a useful idea! I was wondering what programme you use for playing the videos? I was using Windows Media Player, and it only let me have one video playing at a time. Any tips on how to get round this?
Thanks,
Liz
Hi Tom,
I'm training this year, and tried out using the Smart Recorder for a handwriting lesson this week, and it really helped the children, so thanks for a useful idea! I was wondering what programme you use for playing the videos? I was using Windows Media Player, and it only let me have one video playing at a time. Any tips on how to get round this?
Thanks,
Liz
Your blog post on handwriting was very timely as I have just been thinking about handwriting and how I teach it, especially how I can improve the handwriting of the 6 and 7 year olds I teach. As a teacher of junior children, I agree strongly with Leslie's comment – handwriting IS very important. If we can teach our junior children well, perhaps it will not be so important in subsequent class levels.
That said, I think your idea for making use of the video capture tool on an IWB is a great one. I always want to be in two (or twenty places at one time when teaching handwriting. To be freed up to move among the children, while still providing a model is just what I want. I'll have to do some experimenting. Thanks for the ideas.
Dear Tom,
As a literacy specialist and as a trained Reading Recovery teacher, I have thought deeply about handwriting. handwriting is VERY important to learn as children are beginning to form the letters. If children are not taught to write the letter the same way every time, then making the letter causes them to have to make a decision, should I go that way or this. It is crucial for all students to be able to write letters quickly and efficiently, fluently- without thought…so that they may move into thinking about the content of their writing and getting their message onto the page. If children are left alone to figure out how to write the letters, some will do it differently each time…this is not where we need creativity to lie, but in the word choice and ideas on the page…So I hope I offer you an even stronger rationale for your handwriting lesson.
All the best.
Leslie Maniotes