Page 5 - PONY Think Write Teachers Guide Module 1.

Module 1: Learning the Cognitive Framework Teacher’s Guide
Introduction
Welcome to Module 1 of the Hemispheres Think Write Handwriting Programme: Learning the Cognitive Framework.
The programme is structured around the development of an internal ‘cognitive framework’ that can be used as a ‘hook’ or structure to make the learning of handwriting easier. It is important that all children when they start the programme spend sometime learning the right cognitive framework as it offers a child the ability to organise his or her knowledge, but also improves the storage and recall of information that will guide and help them learn the correct formation of their alphabet letters.
The Hemispheres‘ Think Write Handwriting Programme has four distinct modules:
Module 1: Learning the Cognitive Framework Module 2: Getting Ready for Writing
Module 3: Learning to Write
Module 4: Writing with Fluency and Control
We recommend that all children begin with Module 1: Learning the Cognitive Framework. In this module children are introduced to the Hemispheres’ animal characters, which act as the visual figurehead for the letter categories. Through movement and associative learning, children learn that some letters start with a tall straight line, others begin with a short straight line while the rest start with an up and over and have a big round tummy. Each character has been carefully selected to match and link together with children’s understanding of the animals. It is this associative learning that will form the basis for the cognitive framework and structure your child’s memory and learning.
There are three key animal characters: cow (Harriet), Shetland pony (Georgia) and sheep (Rupert and Zac) that represent the three formation categories, tall line letters, up and over letters and short line letters respectively. The rabbit (Pippa) character represents a spatial placement group, and defines a group of letters that have a long tail, and go underground.
Overall Targets for Module 1: Learning the Cognitive Framework
1. To be matching each animal character to its movement
2. To be matching each animal character to its starting line
3. To be linking Harriet the Cow to the key words, tall and straight
4. To be linking Georgia the Shetland Pony to the key words, up and over
5. To be linking Rupert the White Sheep to the key words, short and straight
6. To be showing associative learning between the animal character and starting shape
7. To link the animal character with their special position on the illustrated writing paper (i.e. cloud, helicopter, worm) 8. To be accurately drawing each starting line with correct placement and control
Children will be introduced to the programme at different stages of their learning. The lesson plans in this book have deliberately been broken down into small steps to demonstrate all the learning objectives. We recommend that teachers use their professional expertise to link the lesson plans together to build the curriculum that best meets the needs of the children in their class.
For children in Nursery we would encourage the pace of learning to follow the layout in the book, perhaps linking two lesson plans together, building knowledge over time, with lots of repetition and practice. The lesson plans in this guide have been designed to accompany the development of prewriting skills in young children, helping to strengthen control of the pencil so children can learn to form starting shapes and transition onto letters when they are ready.
More information on prewriting skills can be found in the Teacher’s Guide Module 2: Getting Ready for Writing and activity sheets in the Activities Manual.
In Reception, whilst children are learning the phonetic sounds for the alphabet letters we would recommend that children begin to learn the action, matching and categorisation games in Module 1. The pace of learning at this stage can be more accelerated with children learning several of the lesson plans in one lesson, building knowledge faster and as indicated combining this with some of the lesson plans in the Teacher’s Guide Module 3: Learning to Write. It is recommended the programme be delivered every day initially, reducing the frequency as children transition into letter formation. Children in Reception benefit from handwriting instruction a minimum of 3 times per week.
If introducing the programme to children in Years 1 & 2, the aim would be to cover the structure of the cognitive framework as quickly as possible. Teaching the structure to children who are already writing will support and consolidate the correct formation, joining strokes, size, height and spatial position of the letters. This is the final stage in the development of hand- writing before automatic control develops.
© 2014 Shelley Birkett-Eyles. Hemispheres Think Write Limited