Flexibility is the key.
Encourage quality and not quantity.
Every child picks up writing at a different pace. Some can write lots and also write for extended lengths of time, while others write little and do not have the patience to write for long periods. Hence, it is very important to customise writing to suit the child’s capabilities. This would ensure that the child and the adult do not get frustrated.
Do not force every child to finish pages of every letter, number or sentence. How much a child writes should not be the parameter to assess his progress. It should suffice if the child knows what he is writing.
For instance, if the child is writing number 28, see if he is able to recognise the number first. Then check if he is able to write it with ease. If the child is familiar with the number and writes it with ease, would it make sense to force him to write pages of the same number? He might as well utilise his time more constructively.
Often, we adults are so paranoid about getting a set quantity of work completed by children, that we take our focus off the quality of learning.
Let the goal not be to finish five, ten or fifty pages of anything. Let the goal be to ensure that what is being written, even if just half a page, is being absorbed by the child.
Love your posts on helping kids to write. Great tips thank you!
ReplyDeleteThanks Roopa Shri. Glad you found it useful :)
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