St. James C.E. Primary
Handwriting Policy
‘Caring, sharing, learning together’
Signed (Chair of Governors)
Date
Signed (Head Teacher)
Date
Reviewed June 2014
Next review May 2015
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St James CE Primary School
Handwriting Policy
Aims and Objectives
Handwriting is a skill, like reading and spelling, that plays a major part in written
communication across the curriculum. Here at St James, we strive to teach children a
cursive handwriting style that allows them to develop confidence, accuracy and fluency in
writing. We firmly believe that a cursive style impacts on standards in presentation from
Early Years right up until the end of Key Stage Two.
The main aims of handwriting are:
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To provide equal opportunities for all pupils to achieve success in handwriting;
To produce clear, concise, legible handwriting;
To present work to a variety of audiences neatly;
To develop accuracy and fluency;
To help children recognise that handwriting is a form of communication and as
such should be considered important in order for it to be effective;
To promote confidence and self-esteem;
To encourage children to take pride in their work;
To help children recognise that handwriting as a life-long skill and will be a
fundamental element of all forms of written communication throughout their lives;
To display neatly presented work around the school as a model of excellence for
others to aspire to.
Teaching and Learning
Children at St James are taught to write using cursive script (correct letter formation is
attached to the appendix of this policy). If children master a fluent style of handwriting at
an early age, then they can then concentrate on the context of their writing as opposed to
the actual mechanics of it.
The rules of cursive script help:
 to minimise confusion for the child as every letter starts on the line with an entry
stroke (pre-cursive) and leads out with an exit stroke;
 with the flow of cursive writing as letters naturally flow into each other, it is
impossible to write separate letters without joining;
 form spacing between words as the child develops whole word awareness;
 develop a child's visual memory;
 all children's writing skills regardless of academic ability;
 to develop skills of punctuation and grammar.
Across school we expect to see high standards of handwriting, both from children and
staff. As far as possible all labels, worksheets and other resources shared with children
are completed in cursive script, with all staff modelling the cursive style whenever
handwriting is undertaken with pupils and for pupils, e.g. on flipcharts, whiteboards and in
marking. The electronic font ‘Handwriting for Windows’ or ‘HfW’ should be used to support
this. Handwriting on a display should be fully cursive, however we want our children to
access a range of printed fonts on displays around school.
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Handwriting should be taught as a discrete lesson for the whole class or small groups
where relevant. If handwriting is taught to the whole class, there should be adequate adult
support to ensure that children do not spend the lesson practising bad habits. During
handwriting lessons or activities, children should be taught the correct posture for sitting at
the table and taught the correct pencil grip.
Handwriting lessons or activities should focus on one particular letter formation ‘family’ at a
time. The four families are: ‘Curly Caterpillar’ (anti-clockwise formation), ‘One-armed
Robot’ (down, up and over stroke), ‘Long Ladder’ (ascenders) and ‘Zig-Zag Letters’
(across or down in straight Iines) (taken from Developing Early Writing). From KS1,
children should also be taught to use the vocabulary: ‘ascender’, ‘descender’ and ‘precursive’.
Teaching and Learning in the EYFS
Children begin to ‘write’ long before they have control of the mechanics of writing. The
Early Years Foundation Stage should provide a safe, supportive and encouraging
environment where children can experiment and take risks alongside the development of
these mechanical skills.
Independent writing opportunities are important and seen to be supportive of the
programme for developing handwriting and phonics skills. These opportunities include all
areas of continuous provision with activities that promote both gross motor and fine motor
skills. More direct teacher input can develop pupils’ gross motor skills and fine motor skills
of making marks from left to right, letter formation and orientation. Pencil grip, posture,
positioning of the paper and organisation of the writing space all have an impact on later
learning and fluency in writing.
Our youngest children in the nursery are introduced to handwriting through the ‘Squiggle
Whilst you Wiggle’ approach. Children are given the opportunity to experiment with a
variety of mark making tools and are allowed to use both hands for mark making. Adults
concentrate on a particular method of formation during each session. Children are taught
the beginnings of the cursive script during these sessions.
During the Reception year, children are taught correct cursive formation through the Read,
Write Inc programme. Each letter in the Read, Write Inc programme has a rhyme to
support letter formation and this should be adhered to during these sessions.
To support the development of fine motor skills in the EYFS, children take part in weekly or
daily ‘Dough Disco’. The purpose of this activity is to strengthen the muscle tone in the
fingers in order to promote correct pencil grip and pressure for writing.
Children in EYFS mainly have access to chunky writing materials that support the tripod
pencil grip. When children have developed adequate fine motor skills, they should have
access to slimmer mark making tools.
Teaching and Learning in KS1
Building on from the EYFS, pupils at KS1 develop a legible style and have a more formal
approach to handwriting. This will take the form of weekly handwriting sessions, either as a
whole class or in small groups.
At the start of Year 1, children should be undertaking ‘Dough Disco’, if needed, to help
develop their fine motor skills further. Some children may need ‘Squiggle Whilst you
Wiggle’ as an intervention strategy.
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By the end of KS1, we expect all pupils to be able to hold a pencil correctly and be using
the cursive script. Children who are finding it difficult to master the cursive script and pencil
control, should undertake specific intervention to address these issues. If needed, children
should be using pencil grips to support their hold. When children are confident and
competent at forming cursive letters individually, then they should then be taught how to
join their letters accurately.
Teaching and Learning in KS2
All children across KS2 are expected to use cursive script and when ready join their letters
accurately. If necessary, any children who are still struggling to use cursive script should
undertake handwriting practice in small groups. Pencil grips should be used if children are
not holding their pencils accurately.
The National Curriculum states that handwriting should still be taught in Years 3 & 4, with
more of a focus of practising handwriting in Years 5 & 6. Teachers should determine
whether a whole class approach to handwriting or small group work is the best approach
for their pupils.
Some older children tend to develop their own style of handwriting, but at St James we still
expect them to use cursive script when presenting any work in a book or for display. In
Years 5 & 6 pupils should be clear when it is appropriate to use a particular standard of
handwriting for a given task (National Curriculum).
Children in KS2 who are using cursive script to a high standard may be awarded a ‘Pen
Licence’. Children can only be awarded this licence if they use cursive handwriting
consistently across the curriculum. Children with a Pen Licence are allowed to use a
school bought handwriting pen in black ink. Pen Licence’s may be revoked if a child no
longer uses a cursive style to a high standard.
Learning Environment
As far as possible any handwritten display within the classroom and throughout the school
should reflect the adopted handwriting scheme in the labelling and interactive
comments/questions displayed. The more the children see the expected handwriting style
around them in the environment, the greater chance they will strive to adopt the style. The
children should be presented with ‘best practice and models’ at all times by staff to ensure
they have good examples to follow and that the expectations are made very clear at all
times. We want our children to access a range of printed fonts on displays around school.
Parental Involvement
Parents’ meetings are regularly held to inform parents/carers of their children’s progress
and to encourage their support at home with homework and practising of handwriting
skills. Some children may need some specific targeted packs of handwriting homework to
complete at home with parents.
Assessment
Teachers will assess their pupil’s outcomes regularly through formative assessment.
Teachers undertake formal writing assessments termly and handwriting is taken account
when assessing attainment for the children. End of year and end of unit expectations
identified in the National Curriculum 2014 should be used to determine if a child is working
at a relevant age related expectation.
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Inclusion
The majority of pupils are able to write legibly and fluently but some pupils need more
support and a specific programme may need to be drawn up by the SENCO in
consultation with staff and/or outside agencies. Children who require a personalised
handwriting programme will be added to the school provision map.
All staff should be aware of the specific needs of left-handed pupils and the need to make
appropriate provision:
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paper positioned to the left for right-handed pupils and to the right for left-handed
children;
pencils not to be held too close to the point as this can interrupt the pupil’s line of
vision;
pupils positioned so that paper can be placed to the left hand side;
left-handed pupils to be seated to the left of a right-handed child.
We acknowledge in school that there will be some children who will be working below the
age related expectations cited in the National Curriculum 2014, and there will be some
children who are working above their age related expectation. Their needs will be
addressed accordingly.
Roles and Responsibilities
The English Subject Leader, SLT, Head teacher and link Governors will be responsible for
monitoring the impact of this policy, and standards of handwriting across the school,
through work scrutiny, planning scrutiny, drop in observations and lesson observations and
any other relevant monitoring activities.
It is every class teacher’s responsibility to ensure that this policy is adhered to.
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Appendix 1
Example of Cursive Script
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Appendix 2
End of Year/Unit Expectations from National Curriculum 2014
Year Group
1
2
3&4
5&6
Programme of Study (Statutory
Requirements)
Pupils should be taught to:
 sit correctly at a table, holding a
pencil comfortably and correctly
 begin to form lower-case letters in
the correct direction, starting and
finishing in the right place
 form capital letters
 form digits 0-9
 understand which letters belong to
which handwriting ‘families’ (i.e.
letters that are formed in similar
ways) and to practise these.
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.
Pupils should be taught to:
 use the diagonal and horizontal
strokes that are needed to join letters
and understand which letters, when
adjacent to one another, are best left
unjoined
 increase the legibility, consistency
and quality of their handwriting [for
example, by ensuring that the
downstrokes of letters are parallel
and equidistant; that lines of writing
are spaced sufficiently so that the
ascenders and descenders of letters
do not touch].
Pupils should be taught to:
 write legibly, fluently and with
increasing speed by:
 choosing which shape of a letter to
use when given choices and
deciding whether or not to join
specific letters
 choosing the writing implement that
is best suited for a task.
Notes and Guidance (nonstatutory)
Handwriting requires frequent and
discrete, direct teaching. Pupils should
be able to form letters correctly and
confidently. The size of the writing
implement (pencil, pen) should not be
too large for a young pupil’s hand.
Whatever is being used should allow the
pupil to hold it easily and correctly so that
bad habits are avoided.
Left-handed pupils should receive
specific teaching to meet their needs.
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.
Pupils should be using joined
handwriting throughout their independent
writing. Handwriting should continue to
be taught, with the aim of increasing the
fluency with which pupils are able to
write down what they want to say. This,
in turn, will support their composition and
spelling.
Pupils should continue to practise
handwriting and be encouraged to
increase the speed of it, so that problems
with forming letters do not get in the way
of their writing down what they want to
say. They should be clear about what
standard of handwriting is appropriate for
a particular task, for example, quick
notes or a final handwritten version. They
should also be taught to use an unjoined
style, for example, for labelling a diagram
or data, writing an email address, or for
algebra and capital letters, for example,
for filling in a form.
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