Quick Tips for Handwriting: STRONG posture
In this addition to our series of Quick Tips blogs, we look at how to support good handwriting through STRONG posture.
Good posture is an essential element of developing fluent handwriting. If children are unable to sit properly, they are likely to tire easily, find handwriting painful and struggle to establish a fluent and efficient style.
The STRONG acronym is a useful way to remind the children (and yourself) of the elements that encourage good writing posture.
Straight back
Encourage children to sit up straight rather than slouch back or lean over their table. Ensure the tables and chairs in your classroom are the appropriate size for your children. If you have any particularly small or tall members of the class, you may want to borrow furniture from a different year group.
Tuck chair in
If the chair is too far back from the table, children will over-extend themselves to reach their paper. This will result in untidy handwriting and likely cause tiredness. Be mindful that they don’t tuck their chair in too far so that they are squashed and uncomfortable. They should have a small gap (about the size of their fist) between them and the table.
Rest forearms on table
As teachers, we know the challenge of holding a pen in the air as we write on a flipchart or whiteboard, where there is no support under out writing hand - I flip hand to a sideways grasp where the edge of my hand provides the support I need when writing on the board. Encourage children to rest their forearms on the table to support their hands as they write. Again, table height can play an important part in getting this right. If the table is too high, they may raise and hunch their shoulders which can cause muscle stress. If the table is too low, they will need to bend forwards which again, causes stress to muscles and impacts on the quality of their handwriting.
Organise equipment
A clear, uncluttered desk means there is space for their paper and their forearms. I think most of us would agree that this is good practice anyway. Multiple pencil cases, books and water bottles etc can make for a distracting work space regardless of a focus on handwriting.
Ninety-degree angle
This refers to the angle of their feet to the floor with a 90° angle at the ankles, their arms flat on the table with a 90° angle at the elbows, and their knees bent at 90°. Think of it as 90, 90, 90.
Grounded flat feet
Encourage the children to have both feet placed flat on the floor to give them as much stability as possible.
If you liked this article, we have others in the Quick Tips series. See below.
This article was informed by Good Practice for Handwriting produced by The National Handwriting Association.