One day at the end of May, after dinner time, Phuong Thuy (Cau Giay, Hanoi) was “excited” when she opened her child’s writing notebook.
The girl writes sideways, up and down, when big and small, one word after another zigzags like Thai characters. Fearing that the three-month summer break would make her child’s hands stiff, she would not be able to keep up with the class when in the new school year, she planned to find a place to practice writing for her children.
Mr. Ngoc Hai (Hai Ba Trung, Hanoi), the parent of Bao Khang, was also surprised and disappointed when one day he was assigned the task of looking after his child to study. He discovered Bao Khang was… drawing letters. The letter O is a closed circle, instead of being written from the top down counter-clockwise, Khang hooks the stroke from the bottom up in a clockwise direction.
“It’s not a written word,” said Mr. Hai, and shared that he had taught his children to practice beautiful handwriting since March with a fee of 200-300 thousand VND per session.
A student’s incorrect handwriting. Image: provided by the teacher
Severely affected by the pandemic, 1st graders across the country have just spent most of their time learning online in the 2021-2022 school year. Two big cities, Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, allow primary school children to stay at home the longest. They only go to school directly in the last 2-3 months of the year. This context is assessed by teachers as having a great influence on the learning quality of grade 1 children, especially in writing content.
Ms. Luong Ngoc Anh, a teacher of Times School Primary School (Hanoi) said that when learning online, teachers will record videos, record the movements of hands, fingers, how to hold a pen, etc. guide students. However, students do not always focus on the lecture. Therefore, when directly writing, they do not hold the pen properly and present the wrong standard.
Ms. Ngoc Anh added that teaching first graders to write requires a meticulous, three-step process. Step one, the teacher let students observe the letter pattern, comment on the width and height. In the second step, the teacher writes a sample, incorporating verbal instructions to the students. Step three, students write on the blackboard or notebook.
Writing requirements for 1st grade students include: correct lowercase, medium, small and correct uppercase letters; seamlessly write letters in rhymes and sounds; write correct digits (from 0 to 9); correctly write words with sounds that start with c, k, q, g, gh, ng, ng; Correct spelling of the poem, the passage is about 30-35 words in length in the forms of seeing – writing (copying), listening – writing, writing speed is about 30-35 words/15 minutes and students do not have too many problems. 5 errors.
A piece of writing practice with many spelling mistakes by students. Image: provided by the teacher
Ms. Thanh Huyen, a teacher of grade 1 in Nam Tu Liem district, said that this year, 60% of the school’s 1st graders failed to meet the requirements for handwriting. While, this figure in previous years was only 25-30%.
And Ms. Dang Huyen Phong – Principal of Isaac Newton Primary School (Hoang Quoc Viet, Bac Tu Liem) did not give specific statistics but also said: “This year, the number of children writing is not more beautiful. “.
Anticipating the inadequacies in online learning, Hong Van – a parent of Hoa Binh Primary School (District 11, Ho Chi Minh City) – spent time with her son practicing writing at home, but the boy did not cooperate. The process of re-learning online was less effective, so he still wrote zigzags, missing the top and bottom.
“I’m helpless, and my children have tears in their eyes every time it’s time to study online. Fortunately, once they went back to school, their handwriting improved by 80%,” she said. However, she still finds a place to send her children to practice their letters more, so that they can write correctly and better.
Phuong Loan, a teacher specializing in teaching beautiful handwriting in Hoang Mai, Gia Lam and Long Bien areas, said that the need for children to practice writing has increased dramatically since the beginning of this summer. “From the end of April to the beginning of May, students have not finished their summer vacation, the number of parents registering for their children to practice literacy has increased by 20-30% compared to the same period in previous years,” she said.
At many groups of primary school parents on social networks, from the beginning of April, activities of gathering together, opening literacy classes to hire her to teach together were also active. Most parents want to organize a class of 3-5 children, study 2-3 times a week, while helping their children interact with friends and practice writing.
Primary school teachers directly shape students to write words during direct teaching hours. Photo: Character provided
According to Ms. Ngoc Anh, in order for children to write beautiful and correct letters, without harming their eyesight and spine, besides how to hold a pen, sitting posture is very important. Teachers or parents need to guide children to sit upright; back straight, do not lean chest against the table or lie down; the head is slightly bowed and tilted to the left; two eyes 25-30cm apart from the notebook; legs comfortably, shoulder width apart, parallel to each other, body weight on hips and thighs; comfortable hands.
Students hold a pen with three fingers: thumb, index finger, and middle finger. In it, the thumb holds the left side of the pen body. The index finger is placed in the center of the pen body, about 2 cm from the tip of the nib. The thumb and index finger control the direction of the pen. The middle finger is placed on the right side to support the pen.
After holding the pen correctly, students need to keep their wrists straight. Place the pen in the sitting direction, the pen angle is about 45 degrees relative to the paper. Use your fingers and wrist muscles to control the pen as you write. Pen direction is left to right, top to bottom. Arms and wrists need to work together to move the pen horizontally.
The female teacher shared that the handwriting of grade 1 children can be improved through practice. Therefore, parents do not necessarily force their children to take extra summer lessons, but can encourage their children to practice writing at home, following the above rules.
Regular, regular practice every day will help children remember for a long time and make finger and wrist muscles more flexible. “Hundred or not with familiar hands, regular practice of writing helps children perfect their mistakes; from then on, writing better every day”, Ms. Ngoc Anh shared.
Le Thu
at Blogtuan.info – Source: vnexpress.net – Read the original article here
