FacilitatingSpelling&Writing

Development

In this session
Development for Handwriting
Promote early writing skills
Writing skills
Spelling skills

Introduction

(Kindergarten phonics activities for

writing) 3.39
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey1ovOFXwz

Problems face by
teachers
In your group
Brainstorm problems teachers
face each day in teaching writing.

Writing Standards

Learn to write
at
word, phrase,
and
sentence levels

Master the
mechanics of
writing

Writing

Handwritin
g

Pre-Writing
Body Stability
Motor Development proceeds from head to toe and
from the trunk to the extremities (hands and feet).
Control of body moves from head and neck to the
shoulders, the trunk, and the hips and legs.
It also develops first from the trunk and then outward.
The joints of the body need to be stable before the
hands can be free to focus on specific skilled fine motor
tasks.

Fine Motor Skills

When a certain amount of body stability has
developed, the hands and fingers begin to work on
movements of dexterity and
isolation as well as on different kinds of grasp.
Hand dominance development
Eye-hand coordination

Beginning

Stage

of

Major line patterns in

alphabet writing

Handwriting

Development

These lines are the foundation lines for

all 26 alphabets and number 0-9

Ways to practice
What do you know of ways to practice letter
recognition and handwriting?
Break into a group of 6/7
Come up with as many ideas as possible
You have 5 minutes

Writing
Gross-Motor

Finger/Hand
Arms
Body
Multiple
bodies

vs.

Fine-Motor

Finger-painting
Pencil
Pen
Paintbrush
play dough
Shaving Cream
MiniWhiteboard
/chalkboard

Teaching handwriting
Concerning:
Poor letter formation
Letter sizes
Incorrect use of upper- and lower- cases letters
Space
Alignment
Slant
Fluency/Speed
Reversal

Reversals
Teachers should recognize the following:
Reversals are common before the age of six or
seven.
A few students continue to reverse numbers and
letters after the age of seven and may need direct
intervention techniques.

Components of Handwriting
Legibility
Legibility is the most important goal of handwriting
instruction, and incorrect letter formation is the most
frequent interference.
Fluent writing
Just as not knowing how to read words fluently
impairs reading comprehension, inadequate fluency in
writing letters and words impairs written expression
and the quality of written responses (Spear-Swerling,
2006).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIxUtwO29r8
(Teaching proper pencil grip) 2.47

Tools

for

improving

handwriting

Slant
Weighted pencil/pen
Pencil gripper
Raised-line paper
Different form or shape pencil

quality

Teaching Writing
As important as teaching reading
The key to teaching writing is to give students as
many opportunity to write as possible.
Practice makes Perfect
Just like reading comprehension, writing relies on
background knowledge to model how you think
while you write

Remember
A child may not have the ability to write, but s/he
sure has stories to tell and want to express
Our role is to help support them so they get to tell
their stories

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iboqoB7Z4F8
(Common Core Writing Kindergarten Lesson) 45.57

Giving opportunity

Days of the week

Daily reflection or writing autopsy
Cloze writing
Poem

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2uhcUAIhBE
(The Better Way to Teach Kids to Write) 4.51

Guided Writing
Small group instruction
Teacher guiding student through the writing
process
Even with children who have limited vocabulary
can create a story
Allow the student to write what they can. Even
with inventive spelling
Error Analysis