The Educator (Volume 45) - IAMPETH

22
A New Procedure in Teaching Handwriting
After many years experience in
teaching in Business College and High
School classes, I am convinced that
several valuable beginning steps
should be added to the average Penmanship
teacher's method of procedure.
Far back of the time worn expression
the "Three R's", Penmanship has
been taught and practiced by repeating
individual words along the lines.
As you know, the usual teaching custom
is to practice on words but a short
time and launch quite abruptly into
sentence practice.
You surely must have noticed what
a jumble of words make up the average
sentence. Few consecutive words
are the same length. Fewer start or
finish with the same combination of
letters. This old custom scatters the
effort so that the attainment of skill
is almost nil.
In my years of study and experiences,
I have found that if the teacher
can confine the lessons or steps in lessons
to more specific targets, the student
has a positive chance to attain
skill.
In the first shorthand lessons and
also in the initial practice on the typewriter,
many authors carefully select
and group words of similar phonetic
beginnings or endings.
I have found that such a careful selection
and grouping of words for
handwriting practice is even more essential,
for the scholars are younger
and need easier targets if they are
to accomplish.
BY BURTON A. O'MEALY
Author of "Handwriting Teachers' Assignment Dictionary"
For 23 Years Instructor in the High School of Commerce, Portland, Oregon
Here attention is called to the importance
and need for some definite
column word practice in a well balanced
course in Penmanship. In office,
factory, store and many other
lines of business, a great portion of
the written records are in columns.
It is therefore very appropriate to devote
some definite time to a specific
systematic column practice of words.
There is far greater chance to perfect,
the individual word by a column plan
of practice. Such practice immediately
cultivates more orderly habits in
handwriting.
Several lines should be devoted to
practice on words starting or finishing
with the same combination of letters.
Later full page assignments should be
evolved which have as an objective
the mastery of a definite beginning
or ending target.
Groups of words should be arranged
that start with frequent combinations
such as: si, st, sh, sm, sn, sk, sp,
sw, ch, cr, cl, gr, gl, pi, br, bl, fl.
Endings : ed ton. ing. 2nd, els and
many others
1 2 3 4 5 1 ines
sta'vr slant slaps slash slack 1
slave slant slaps slash slack 2
slave slant slaps slash slack 3
slave slant slaps slash slack 4
slime slo