The Writing Framework has just been published, and I'm pleased to have been part of the sector panel to help produce this important document. I'm optimistic that the framework will help leaders to further develop the teaching of writing in their schools gov.uk/government/publicatio…

Number formation Don’t neglect this. Decide how you are going to teach number formation and do this consistently. Do the same for punctuation marks - what do inverted commas/question marks/pound signs look like at your school? High levels of consistency helps pupils to succeed.

Consistent script for letter formation Every teacher should use the same language when describing letter formation across school. The @KineticLetters script for forming the letter r is ‘Down-bump. Back up. Push over.’ The script should be precise and adhered to with 100% consistency.

Phonics and Handwriting Phonics programmes are generally taught independently from handwriting in school. They often encourage writing at an early point in Reception when pupils may not have the letter formation knowledge they need. Consider holding off on writing in phonics lessons until the requisite handwriting knowledge has been taught. Pupils can use magnetic letters to build words as an alternative.

Whiteboard pens Many whiteboard pens that primary pupils use are too chunky for small fingers. All our good work on developing correct grip in HW lessons can go out of the window when writing on mini-whiteboards. Use whiteboard pens that closely match your usual writing equipment. If you use thin triangular pens (which I recommend) when writing in books, then use thin triangular pens on mini-whiteboards.

I am indebted to Margaret Williamson from @KineticLetters for her support and guidance in helping me to understand the complexities of teaching handwriting. If you are thinking seriously about pupils achieving automaticity with handwriting, then Kinetic Letters comes highly recommended not just by me but also by @claresealy, @TomRees_77 and @MrsSTeaches.

Deliberate Practice I used to ask pupils to practise letter formation by writing a string of letters across the page one after another. Without fail, pupils writing became worse with each consecutive letter! Instead of doing this, ask pupils to write a small number of letters together (perhaps 3 or 4 at a time), put their pencil down, check their work then pick it up again and repeat the group of letters. This makes a huge difference and pupils get additional practice at picking up their pencil using the routine you have taught.

A Thread on Handwriting… Over the past 2 years, I have paid more attention to the way handwriting is taught than at any other point in my career. Handwriting seemed a fairly simple thing that pupils would just pick up with a few lessons on letter formation. I was wrong! Here are some things I think about now that I didn’t always consider before…

If you were to ask, is it worth the cost? We would definitely say yes. It is such a well structured and rigorous programme with excellent CPD included. We've seen some pupils who had indecipherable handwriting make great progress in a matter of months.

Great writing from Y1 this week after studying Amelia Earhart in their History lessons. @KineticLetters is working wonders with handwriting too...