Fountain pens

[JoJoMummy321]

Hi,

Can anyone suggest which fountain pen is best to start with? DD is moving to a new school after the Easter holidays next year and I have noticed on the list of equipment they have to have that it includes a fountain pen. She doesn't use one currently so I would like to purchase one for her to practise with. Any suggestions??

Thanks in advance.

I just use the cheap own brand cartridge ones from WH smith for my dc's

When kids first use fountain pens I think they tend to push too hard on nib so it can break easily. But aside from that, at school things just get lost/damaged so easily I personally wouldn't bother investing in a better one - not at first anyway

Agree 100% with Grungie. Theyre always getting broken round here, always lo g before the cartridge needs replacing!

get a banana pen first (helps with correct grip and pushing too hard issues) then get her a parker or Lamy (these are what our school uses as they are hard wearing) also check she will be allowed to use it straight away, our obtain a provisional pen licence for the banana pen then a full one for the fountain pen.

wheresthepimms (great name!) I need to know what a banana pen is and where to get one from? THANKS

By why on earth do they have to use a fountain pen? DO they use slates and chalk lower down the school????

Lamy do special ones for school kids - including one for left-handed kids.

Our school uses fountain pens too - I think they promote better penmanship than ballpoints do.

I'd second Lamy pens too. It is possible to get left handed nibs and other types of nibs too. My left hander found that it was easier to write with one of their italic nibs. Stationery shops often give you the chance to try before you buy. Important especially if you are left handed. We bought a few types before we found one that my DD could actually write with. So although Lamy pens are more expensive initially they do last.
I do not have angels for DCs and they have never broken a nib or lost their pen - am I just lucky?

Whoknowswho a banana pen is a pen shaped like a banana you can get them in Tesco, they have refill ink with them, we just got one for DC2 as he got his provisional licence the last week of term :)

also on amazon try here

they do left handed ones too, would try it to practice over the summer then get a Lamy for the last week before school. Oh and if DD doesn't want to write lots over the summer try what I do with my lazy boys and refuse to talk to them for an hour a day where all communication must be done through post it notes

But why?

seeker because if you can write with a fountain pen without smudging it (yes v difficult for a leftie) then you are writing in a "correct" style and most pupils then experience less hand ache when writing pages and pages of writing, or so the hand writing expert at our DCs school said personally I think it is so your DCs get ink on their white shirts and you have to buy more from the over priced school shop

I still use my lamy pen from when I was at school. it is more than 20 years old!
I use refillable cartridges and inkpot which is much cheaper than buying the original cartridges.

I started of in primary with "pelikan" fountain pens, though. I think I went through 2 of them before graduating to lamy.

Our school recommends Parker Vector. I buy them off Amazon.

My dd uses a Lamy. Started with it in Year 3 and she has now finished Year 5 - it still looks in pretty good shape.

older dc use parker vector and 11 year old uses a left handed one from anythinglefthanded.co.uk
I think you can get them on amazon though

Why can't they just use pens that are easy to use, non messy, non fragile and not anachronistic?

seeker because then we will all end up like this

I think there sn area of compromise between fountain pens and text speak!

yes seeker but I do think it is funny, glad my DCs are back in the UK and no longer in the US (although DD did come home with a letter saying she needed remedial typing lesson, she is 10 and I told her no writing reports on pc till she can show me she can write properly with a pencil)

I would love for my DCs to write in pencil but their school says banana pen then fountain pen, I remember mine was pencil straight to fountain pen (got to college and went straight to the bic biro)

my ds's school insist that all work is done in fountain pen.

Is it a private school, DDF?

DDT our school is pencil til you get a provisional licence, banana pen for at least 2 years, then you get a full pen licence and must use a fountain pen.

Seeker ours is private, so I guess we pay to have them tortured by fountain pens

Funnily enough I was about to ask mn the same question as my dd needs one too. She'll be going into Y3.
I've looked on the lamy website and have seen quite a few. Are you suggesting the Lamy ABC or the Lamy Safari?
Has anyone used Pelikan Pelikano Junior ones?

My son uses bog standard parkers, but has recently discovered left handed Pelikan ones and prefers those.

Pelikan

seeker, yes.