Handwriting policy – school-wide or teacher-specific?

[LetItGoToRuin]

Is it normal for teachers to have their own handwriting rules, or is there normally a school-wide policy?

DD says that her class have just been told to join from b’s and p’s, contradicting last year’s instructions. DD put her hand up to query it, and was told, “well, you’re in year 3 now”.

We’ve never seen a handwriting policy, and there isn’t one on the school’s website. The teacher is an NQT and I wonder whether she feels forced into making her own decisions if the school hasn’t been helpful to her (and is therefore a bit narked when goody-two-shoes know-it-alls like DD question her at every turn).

I’ve suggested that DD asks the teacher for a copy of the handwriting policy so her parents can help her to apply the new rules. I fully expect no handwriting policy to be forthcoming, in which case I guess I should simply support her to learn to change her style, and I am happy enough to do this and it won’t cause DD a great deal of difficulty, but I just have a nagging feeling that she’ll be changing back again in Y4…

What happens at your schools?

Our school have school handwriting policy, and have examples on yearly hand books and on school website.
But actual teachers uses their own, so it was slightly confusing until my ds got a hang of it. (He wanted to copy teacher's r and k, which was different from school policy.

Ours has a school-wide policy, along with an options to download worksheets where you can trace or copy the handwriting style.

I'm not 100% sure but I think the teachers have also been told to try to use the same style when writing in the children's books and on the boards.

Ours is school wide, not everyone is at the same level. In Y2 my eldest isn't yet doing properly joined up cursive - I know some others are but once they've reached the standard it's consistent.

Normally handwriting is a school policy

Schools often move to fully joined in Key Stage 2 so I would imagine "you're in Y3 now" is the reason for the change.

I can think of one commercial handwriting scheme that adds new joins at year 3, so it might be part of the policy. I’m not sure sending your DD to ask for the handwriting policy is a good idea tbh.

Please don't tell your child to ask her teacher for a copy of the handwriting style so her parents can help her at home - not unless you want your child to be the laughing stock of the staff room . If you want a copy of the handwriting policy ask the teacher yourself.