Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Better Late Than Never!


We've had our Handwriting Without Tears (HWT) materials since last spring. My plan was to start them last summer but we were incredibly busy. Then the plan was for the fall. Again it was postponed. Today was THE day! We finally sat down and had our first official lesson.


Elvis' book is printing. Now he has known how to print all his letters for quite some time. The reason I am having him do the HWT book is because I want him to learn the correct way to print. Sometimes he gets frustrated printing his letters and I believe this program will help build confidence. He enjoyed the little "tricks" and sayings today that help him remember how to form the letters. We worked on F, E, & D.


Boo actually asked several times if she could start her lessons today. I was happy to hear that! She has always struggled with handwriting. I bought her the cursive HWT to help her and build confidence in her as well. I think her struggles are due at least in part to her sensory issues. She enjoyed her lesson and was thrilled with her success.


First the Whiteboard
Our first step was to practice on the whiteboard. I decided to use whiteboards instead of chalkboards. We found these neat crayons that easily write & wipe off. We bought the crayons & the whiteboards from Miller's Pads & Papers.

Very Pleased!

Tracing
We changed step 1 from the whiteboard to tracing the letter with his finger. He traced & said the steps out loud. This may seem little but it helped a lot!

Printing in His Book
Notice his tongue? Lol!

Next Letter, Please!
The next letter to practice was 'E'.

Practice Makes Perfect

Bugs
Bugs saw the whiteboard crayons and wanted to color too. Sweet Pea brought out his truck coloring book & he got right to work.

Last Letter of the Day is 'D'
After putting the wood pieces together and tracing them with his finger it was time for the whiteboard again.

Great Job!

Boo Was Thrilled with Her Success


Successive C's
Boo learned fun sayings to go along with her writing. It's amazing how much these help.


They are both looking forward to their next HWT lesson!


1 comment:

Mama Teaching 3 said...

Glad your enjoying the HWT's books!