Information on joined up writing in the UK

tamarto

ali-t wrote: »

I am in Dundee and know the Education dept use Glow although I have no idea if it is for learning but would give you an idea about what is going on in the schools.

http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/glowscotland/index.asp

I was trying to remember that name the other day, thanks for that.

dizziblonde

If she doesn't like worksheets - cheat and trick her into writing in other ways!

Water and a paintbrush on a pavement outside,
Glitter in a clean tray (unused cat litter ones are great) and a paintbrush - a bunch of little boys I was with yesterday were loving this one, or writing in sand... anything like that!

Confuzzled

tamarto wrote: »

I missread your first post and pressumed you were still abroad, why not pop to the school your daughter may be going to and ask them what you should be doing, i'm sure they'd be happy to as it is in both your interests and of course your daughters for her integration back into the school system to be as smooth as possible.

closer to the time I might do that, right now I don't want to cause problems for myself. i didn't have to register her with the LA here because she hadn't been in school in this area (scottish law about HE) but if i go to them now i might well get a really irritating LA coming in telling me how to do things and causing me trouble.

i'd like to trust they won't be like that but i've heard horror stories from a LOT of people in the various HE groups i belong including people in fife so i'm not going to stir up a possible hornets nest til i have a better idea of where i might end up. if i go to st andrews or dundee i can just put her in our local school and i'll travel (by bus or train, respectively) but i'd prefer edinburgh to be honest. and strangely i wouldn't feel as concerned about contacting them i suppose because their LA can't bother us but also because her old school was extremely helpful.

it's really a shame but with all the ridiculous bad press put out by Mr Balls this summer a lot of HE families feel like we now have to 'hide' from the LA's lest we become their next target. ok now don't want to get anyone upset so rant over BUT if it becomes apperant that i will attend uni in the local area THEN i'll ask the teachers where they feel she should be, i don't want to cause months of unneccessary troubles though so i shall wait for my offers to come in...

btw, approx WHEN do you start get offers from uni's normally? everything is so different here

Confuzzled

ali-t wrote: »

I am in Dundee and know the Education dept use Glow although I have no idea if it is for learning but would give you an idea about what is going on in the schools.

http://www.ltscotland.org.uk/glowscotland/index.asp

ooh thanks for that! i vaguely remember stumbling on the GLOW website a while back though i don't think it was set up in many schools at that point. i'll give it a good perusal i'm sure there will be something useful there :T

daska

TBH the sparklebox concentrate on cursive handwriting rather than handwriting - it's all about the loops... This actually takes longer and is more awkward to learn and to write well and quickly than developing the natural cursive style that occurs as a person develops greater speed in a good hand.

How about getting her to design her own worksheets using Jardotty?

Confuzzled

dizziblonde wrote: »

The two big schemes I see used in schools are Penpals (http://www.cambridge.org/uk/education/primary/literacy/penpals/default.htm) and Nelson (http://www.nelsonthornes.com/nelson_primary/new_html/nelhand_home.htm). Some schools use their own particular formation and it's a complete nightmare for me going into all these different schools and trying to be consistent with the class teacher but not knowing if they do loop ks or not, or if they join from ys with a loop or not.

.

thank you very much for the links about sparklebox, i've never downloaded the toolbar but i'll be careful when using the site (she's nearly outgrown most of it anyway now though). also thanks so much for the other links, they are now in my handwriting bookmarks.

sounds like a real challenge for you on that front! i think at this point i'm inclined to just teach her to write in a manner that is smooth and easy, surely that will be the easiest for anyone to read and if they don't like it they can take it up with me versus her!

i will make a point of sitting down with her teacher before school starts so we can figure out her strengths and weaknesses (by their current teaching level standards) and try to work with him/her to address anywhere we may be behind. as i mentioned earlier, i don't want to give the kids something to tease her about, i'm sure they'll find something eventually, kids do but by being home educated even if it was only for 18 months they'll already have something to pick at, unless of course she's ahead of them and can then spin it has being cool (which it really can be) versus them thinking she's somehow inferior or stupid just because we didn't know they covered something in particular if you see what i mean....

and if i sound a bit paranoid, it's not paranoia, i can't count the amount of disapproving looks and disparaging remarks that have been made to us even after she's just impressed them with how bright she is :rolleyes:

Savvy_Sue

Confuzzled wrote: »

btw, approx WHEN do you start get offers from uni's normally? everything is so different here

DS3 has heard from 4 out of 5 of the places he's applied to, and he applied by the earlier deadline because one of them was Oxford. Some places offer then invite you to visit, others interview then decide whether to offer, others invite you to visit if they're going to offer but don't offer until later. There are set deadlines on the UCAS site, both for when offers have to be made by, and for when you have to have made your mind up by.

And be grateful I'm typing not writing: I was taught joined up in one school, a fairly curly style, then moved to a school where it was only just being taught and we had to do 'Marion Richardson' (showing my age here!) I found it impossible to go back to printing, but also impossible to get my head round the new style, and my handwriting is pretty dire ...

PasturesNew

Completely irrelevant, but when I learnt you started off at age 5 using a pencil, then once your writing was good enough you moved on to using a nib on a stick, with the ink monitor topping up your inkwell. Once you were fully proficient at writing and doing it all neatly and joined up using the nib on a stick, you were then allowed to provide your own proper fountain pen and use that (so long as your ink was blue or blue/black). I remember using my own pen when I was 7.

boltonangel

My son is 7 and they have been doing joined up handwriting for a year or so now, although I did ask the teacher why as it seemed very early and she said it was a little earlier than the curriculum suggests.
My ds can't write 'normally' yet never mind cursive!!!

I'm in my mid twenties and I learnt it in year 4 of primary, although I have never used it since!

DVardysShadow

We were taught to print with a pencil and went most of the way through primary school like that, until some parent went and gave the headmistress an ear bashing for not preparing us for secondary school. After which we were given inkwells and dipping pens. Ugh.

I was never really taught to join letters, we were basically just told off for lifting the pen off the paper. I struggled to maintain anything approaching a consistent pressure - either the ink would not flow or I dragged a hole in the paper - and the strain on my hand from a fountain pen really hurt. My writing was hard to read through secondary school. Mother bought me a book on cursive writing, which was less than helpful. While it made my writing consistent, it made it consistently awful.

Relief came, when I turned to using a biro towards the end of secondary school, which relieved the problem of maintaining consistent pressure on the paper. Gradually teachers took the prgamatic view that my writing was easier to read.

Over the years, my writing has improved - roller ball pens a definitely better for me and I have made some changes to the letter forms I use. And I don't get hung up about lifting the pen off the page.

And I never use a fountain pen.