mo2 Posted January 20, 2011 Share Posted January 20, 2011 Any other good options? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momchiroto2 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 bump, interested in what others have to say. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 We abandoned Calvin's school-learned printing and did HWT cursive. His writing isn't great, but it's fluent and he's confident. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I don't know if it's the best, but it worked here. I didn't do all of the "stuff;" I just used the printing books with my ds who had trouble with writing in the lines and spacing. The two line method of HWT was a life saver. We are using something else for cursive (I think HWT cursive is ugly,) but I still use the practice book for his printing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boscopup Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 I used the grade 1 printing book to fix letter formation issues in my first grader. I only used the workbook, nothing else. The little sayings that go with each letter *really* helped my son - using "magic c" to form several of the letters, or "dive down, up like a helicopter!" for other letters. He's starting to get good habits now, and we've been at it for about 3 weeks. He was previously forming his letters in weird directions and sometimes having letter reversals (if he uses a "magic c" to form a 'd', it won't be reversed ;) ). HWT print is definitely a hit here! And I've found the double lines to be easier for him to use too. We go between regular paper and double lined paper, so he can still use regular paper without any trouble. I use double lined paper for his spelling. When we get to cursive, I plan to go with Pentime, as that's a nicer font. For print though, I'll be teaching HWT style to all my kids. The little sayings just make it so much easier for them. My son was previously taught with the ball and bat terminology, and he couldn't remember if you did the ball or the bat first on various letters. The "magic c" works so much better for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dani3boys Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 My twin boys,who are 12, have always struggled with handwriting. I finally decided to give up on them learning to print well, and started them on HWOT cursive. They have almost finished their books, so they know it pretty well, but still need practice. But their cursive is SO much better than their printing has ever been. Hopefully by the end of this year they will be fluent in cursive, and can stick with it for most of their writing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momchiroto2 Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 Thank you for your replies, any thoughts on whether to start with cursive to begin with or print? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fabio McFluffypants Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 We are actually using Penelope Gardner's Italics handwriting program right now after using HWT for K through 3rd and having it fail spectacularly. I bought the e-book for 10 dollars and use it for my 1st and 3rd graders. It is actually working for my 3rd grader! Huzzah! Each letter has about a paragraph of explanation on exactly how to write the letter--which really helps my third grader who loves reading but hates writing. He is actually proud of of his handwriting now and asks to hang his work on the fridge. Just google her name to find her site! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted January 21, 2011 Share Posted January 21, 2011 What style of writing has your child been doing, Manuscript or italic? My 3rd grader had really bad handwriting, he had been doing manuscript. Someone told me to switch him to italics and it has been a dream. I did some research into it, I don't fully understand the why and how. I guess manuscript and italic use different parts of the brain, and for some kids the manuscript (or cursive) just does not fully compute. Anyway, we have been using Getty-Dubay italics for about 8 months now and I am really happy with it. We are still working on the print side of things, we will probably start cursive in the summer (after he has had a year with print) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mo2 Posted January 22, 2011 Author Share Posted January 22, 2011 What style of writing has your child been doing, Manuscript or italic? My 3rd grader had really bad handwriting, he had been doing manuscript. Someone told me to switch him to italics and it has been a dream. I did some research into it, I don't fully understand the why and how. I guess manuscript and italic use different parts of the brain, and for some kids the manuscript (or cursive) just does not fully compute. Anyway, we have been using Getty-Dubay italics for about 8 months now and I am really happy with it. We are still working on the print side of things, we will probably start cursive in the summer (after he has had a year with print) We've been doing manuscript but without a curriculum. I picked up a few workbooks at WalMart and Borders I think, but mostly I just taught her myself. (Obviously this was not a good idea!) I was actually trying to decide between HWT and Italics! I spent some time looking at Italics the other day, but then I remembered that HWT is recommended in The Mislabeled Child as being the best way for most children to learn to write. Still trying to decide.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mo2 Posted January 22, 2011 Author Share Posted January 22, 2011 Thanks for the replies, everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlebug42 Posted January 22, 2011 Share Posted January 22, 2011 The only problem I have had with HWOT is that I am now having to unteach some things for my daughter to be able to write on standard notebook paper. I decided to chuck it and am now teaching it on my own and using copywork for practice. It is going to mean a little more prep for me but it seems to be working better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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