Hand writing and the new curriculum

[Morebiscuitsplease]

Thanks to mumsnet I noted that puoils aged 5/6 will get help with handwriting if left handed. My dd1 is left handed in year 2 and think she would benefit from a little help as her hand writing is not great. How would you suggest I approach school, I am happy to support them...was going to do something myself but if they can help it would be great!!
Thanks

[mrz]

There is nothing specifically about left handed pupils in the new curriculum ...

In Y2 the statutory requirement is

Handwriting
Pupils should be taught to:

form lower-case letters of the correct size relative to one another

start using some of the diagonal and horizontal strokes needed to join letters and understand which letters, when adjacent to one another, are best left unjoined

write capital letters and digits of the correct size, orientation and relationship to one another and to lower case letters

use spacing between words that reflects the size of the letters.

Notes and guidance (non-statutory)
Pupils should revise and practise correct letter formation frequently. They should be taught to write with a joined style as soon as they can form letters securely with the correct orientation.

The basic formation is the same for both right and left handed writers with the exception of cross strokes which left handers should form right to left. A left handed child may find it easier to tilt their book to the right and it's better for them to sit to the left of a right handed child so elbows don't bump

[simpson]

DD is left handed (going into yr2) & as Mrz says, her school encourage her to tilt her book/paper slightly to make it easier.

[ReallyTired]

Surely extra help with hand writing should be given to children who need it. Some left handed children have excellent hand writing where as some right handed children really struggle to write neatly.

A left handed child who is taught how to write correctly from the start is less likely to develop problems. I assume that primary school teachers are taught how to teach a left or a right handed child how to write.

[mrz]

Yes support should be given in any area of difficulty but it isn't specified in the new curriculum any more than it was in the old, it's a matter of good practice.

[mrz]

You suppose wrongly Reallytired

[ReallyTired]

Its shocking that best practice on how to teach a left handed child to write is not included in a BEd or Primary PGCE. I feel that nursery nurses and teachers should have some training on how to develop fine motor skills of left handed children. Simple things like left handed sissors make such a difference.

[HarveySchlumpfenburger]

It was covered on mine, but doesn't seem to be standard.

[mrz]

It was "covered" on mine too but very very quickly

[vikingnc]

Don't assume teachers are aware or properly trained. Make sure you are clued up yourself and keep an eye on things. I naively took it for granted that my dd's teachers were aware how to help with something as common as left-handedness - not so! As lovely as they all were (are!) every single one of them had only rudimentary knowledge about this and dd was taught to form letters the right handed way, given no help with hand position, often seated on the wrong side of a right-hander and frequently told to keep her paper straight . Every single year from reception till year six I've had to 'educate' her teachers. It baffles me how little awareness there seems to be in schools (and don't get me started on test papers designed w questions on the left side of the page and answerspace on the right - grrr)

[HarveySchlumpfenburger]

I think it was covered twice but both times briefly. One during an English module and once during a SN/SEN module.

Not sure it covered much more than paper position, where to seat children and a sheet illustrating hand positions. Can't remember if it covered equipment or if I know about that because at least half my family have various degrees of left handedness.

[ReallyTired]

Perhaps there needs to be a mumsnet campaign to get teachers to understand the needs of left handed children. I am sure that ignorance in nursery/ pre school and reception causes unnecessary special needs later on. It is not rocket science to understand that giving a left handed child a pair of right handed sissors is setting up for failure.

[HarveySchlumpfenburger]

Probably better to offer left and right handed pairs and let them choose. I think several of the left handers in my family prefer a right handed pair of scissors using the right hand to a left handed pair.

Come to think of it I don't think I've ever seen a left handed pair outside of the classroom, so maybe none of them use a left handed pair.

I could just come from a family of total weirdos though.

[mrz]

My father always used left handed nail scissors but right handed kitchen scissors.

[mrz]

In nursery and reception many children have yet to establish hand dominance and are often working independently

[SeagullsAndSand]

Wasn't covered on mine even though I specialised in literacy.I did however have the good fortune to do a teaching experience stint at an amazing school which had every single child doing beautiful joined up writing with the correct grip by the time they left rec.

Tbh as the mother of a leftie I don't think the handwriting issue just concerns left handed children.My right handed dd had issues and frankly I was appalled at how little the school cared and how many were sent home with a special pencil in year 3 to improve(like that was going to sort it out).

I get the impression correct pencil grip and handwriting just isn't a high priority anymore.Maybe the tablet,email and screen explosion has a lot to do with it.After all how often do we have to use our handwriting these days?

[HarveySchlumpfenburger]

I don't think hand dominance is a clearly delineated as many people believe it to be.

6 of the 7 left handers in my family eat using the knife in their right hand. The 7th I'm not sure about. The only person that uses their knife in their left hand writes with their right.

[vikingnc]

Rafa
You have a point, there isn't a strict left-right demarkation line. In my dds case, she is definitely a left-hand writer, something that has caused her big problems up until about yr5, but she prefers right handed scissors ( used to have a pair of each in her pencil-case until she worked out what worked for her) and right handed computer mouse.

This is one of the reasons why teachers really ought to be better educated about how to teach lefties. Most really mean well, but simply aren't aware of the issues facing left handlers. ( mostly schools seem to think they can be very proud and the job is done if they offer left handed -often blunt- scissors. that simply isn't the case). This is food for thought: www.lefthandedchildren.org/school-survey-results.htm

[mrz]

I did everything left handed until I broke my left arm in junior school. Now I write with my right hand & eat right handed but do most other things left handed. I can't pour with my right hand without spilling.

[serendipityspeaks]

There is something to be said for vikingnc's comment - don't assume that your teacher is aware. I've been teaching for 15 years now, my training was inadequate at best, i've definitely gained experience over the years but teachers unfortunately are forced to do so much unnecessary paper work it truly does leave them with very little time to focus on or understand the little nitty gritty details that can make or break a child's education. I don't have any experience in the private sector yet, but I will encourage those parents in the public/state schools to pay close attention and start raising a stink about issues like this - and not with your school or with the teacher - with the government who is making it impossible for teachers to teach your child properly, effectively, with confidence, knowledge and experience. The rate of NQT's being hired in every school I'm affiliated with is worrisome. Schools are so worried about OFSTED and making their school look good, the children and their needs become an inconvenience. Fight this.

[Morebiscuitsplease]

That is really interesting ...I think it is overlooked and certainly none of my girls have had any guidance with it. On a school that prides itself on all inclusiveness, I think they haven't ever considered their left handers, even when introducing cursive writing. :(