Handwriting Intervention KS2: A 6-Week Plan For Small Groups

Plan An Intervention

How Do You Run A Handwriting Intervention In KS2?

Run it in six steps.

1. Identify the pupils. Use a quick class check. See the handwriting assessment checklist.
2. Take a baseline. A two-minute copied sentence, a note on grip and posture, and the words per minute.
3. Choose one focus. Formation, joins, speed, or posture and grip.
4. Schedule it. Three short sessions a week for six to eight weeks. The EEF trial used three 30-minute sessions a week for eight weeks.
5. Teach, practise, apply. Model the skill, practise it, then use it in a real sentence.
6. Exit check. Repeat the baseline with the same sentence.

Which Pupils Need A Handwriting Intervention?

A handwriting intervention suits pupils whose handwriting holds back their learning:

• Handwriting that is hard to read.
• Writing that is much slower than classmates'.
• Pupils who avoid writing, or say it hurts.
• Formation habits, such as bottom-up starts, that block joins.

An intervention is not a substitute for referral. If a pupil has wider motor difficulties or pain, talk to the SENCo. See improve your child's handwriting.

What Does A Handwriting Intervention Session Look Like?

A session has the same parts each time. The EEF's Helping Handwriting Shine sessions had a preparation step, a warm-up pencil-control activity and an explicit handwriting activity, with prompts for pupils to think about their own writing.

This is a 15-minute version. Stretch the practice step for a 30-minute session.

How Do You Measure Progress?

Measure progress with three checks, before and after:

1. The same copied sentence, for legibility and formation.
2. The same criteria from the checklist, such as size, spacing and joins.
3. Words per minute on a two-minute copy. See handwriting speed.

Use the same sentence both times. See practice sentences.

Do Handwriting Interventions Work?

The evidence is mixed but encouraging for targeted groups. The Education Endowment Foundation tested Helping Handwriting Shine in two randomised trials across 103 schools. In Year 5, targeting pupils who needed help gave the equivalent of two additional months' progress in overall writing, while the whole-class Year 2 version made no additional progress.

Neither version improved writing composition, and the EEF found it unlikely the programme changed handwriting speed. The programme is not currently available to schools, according to the EEF.

Are There Free Handwriting Intervention Programmes?

Yes. Many NHS children's occupational therapy services publish free handwriting leaflets and activity programmes online, such as warm-ups, multisensory activities and strategies for spacing and pressure. Teachhandwriting.co.uk offers free animations and worksheets. The DfE writing framework lists access to suitable resources and equipment for pupils who need support as current good practice. See multisensory teaching and dyspraxia and writing.