H. W. T. - Handwriting Without Tears

[KateGladstone]

Re:

It looks like a step worse than D'Nealian, which I thought was a co[r]ruption of Zaner Blosser [sic: should have one 's'] for no purpose other than to generate some sales commissions.

You thought wrong -- in another message I've briefly summarized the history of D'N.

 

Re:

By the way, speaking of educational improvements from above, how is that New Math thing going? U.S. students now scoring at the top of the world, after all its been what, forty, fifty years?

 

New Math was discontinued in the late 1970s.

Math scores have fallen further since then, no matter what methods were instituted or re-instituted.

Edited August 4, 2010 by KateGladstone

[KateGladstone]

... (why is the top hump on the B bigger than the lower?)

 

Answer: because HWTears' founder (who drew the letter models) can't see the difference. She and her disciples. when asked. swear that the two parts were drawn identically in size -- and I know of at least one HWTears teacher who, on this basis, punished a child for noticing and asking about the "non-existent" difference.

 

("But ... but ... the Emperor has no clothes!")

 

This is also the same reason that some of the HWTears letters slant backward and others are vertical: the founder, who drew them, thinks that they are all vertical (and you had better think so, too, if you want to pass her course and not be considered to have a "perceptual dysfunction.")

[KateGladstone]

I should be interested to see some samples of [HWTears] text.

 

Brace yourself -- this is a HWTears cursive-font sample from http://www.educationalfontware.com (which makes fonts to match the "biggie" handwriting programs), and HWTears teachers tell me that this sample is completely faithful to their program.

[KateGladstone]

Was the person who desgned HWT a 3 year old herself? NO! Her letters looks as though they were made by one.

They are as ugly as (I would use HWT as a comparisen "Sure, that couch is as ugly as Handwriting Without Tears!")

 

Her expressed intent was to make things easy for 3-year-olds -- and I don't think she succeeded.

Very few 3-year-olds -- or adults, for that matter -- can produce, freehand Euclidean half-circles and verticals (the basic strokes that she has decided must be easiest, on philosophical grounds.)

[sumgaikid]

I should be interested to see some samples of [HWTears] text.

 

Brace yourself -- this is a HWTears cursive-font sample from http://www.educationalfontware.com (which makes fonts to match the "biggie" handwriting programs), and HWTears teachers tell me that this sample is completely faithful to their program.

 

I've seen this before--from the hand of someone who had to put a ruler under what they were writing

since their handwriting was so sloppy.

 

 

John

[LisaN]

I should be interested to see some samples of [HWTears] text.

 

Brace yourself -- this is a HWTears cursive-font sample from http://www.educationalfontware.com (which makes fonts to match the "biggie" handwriting programs), and HWTears teachers tell me that this sample is completely faithful to their program.

http://www.educationalfontware.com/efi%20photoshop%20pngs/HWT.png

 

With so many abrupt changes in trajectory, I can't imagine using that hand would be quicker or smoother than un-joined manuscript printing.

Edited August 4, 2010 by LisaN

[KateGladstone]

most folk don't continue writing with their school-taught hand

 

But most folks don't sit down and *eradicate* any scribal traces of school-taught problems, either.

 

In the city where I live (Albany, New York), most of the schools teach either Zaner-Bloser or D'Nealian or HWTears -- and, when I look at the writing of someone who grew up in this city, either 5, 10, 15, or 20 years after his/her last handwriting lesson, despite everything that has unconsciously changed, I can still identify pretty accurately which program the person learned, no matter how "individual" the writing might otherwise seem or be. (The exceptions -- the folks whose childhood training I can't identify -- tend to be people who intentionally encouraged themselves to adopt or create another style.)

[KateGladstone]

... after the useless singing and dancing is over and everyone sits down at a desk to start writing, ...

Jon

 

HWTears lessons, particularly for the children 7 and under, do not always get to that point: as HWTears specifies that the handwriting lesson must be no more than 10 minutes in length (which the song/dance/puppetry routines can easily fill).

[KateGladstone]

 

 

With so many abrupt changes in trajectory, I can't imagine using that hand would be quicker or smoother than un-joined manusc[r]ipt printing.

 

HWTears' unjoined manuscript (which I showed in another thread, but could re-post if you like) is even significantly slower than any other unjoined writing/printing style. (The program designer thinks that considerations of speed are old-fashioned.)

[LisaN]

 

HWTears' unjoined manuscript (which I showed in another thread, but could re-post if you like) is even significantly slower than any other unjoined writing/printing style. (The program designer thinks that considerations of speed are old-fashioned.)

I thought that was the point of joining the letters.

Everyone has the need for quick legible writing, unless they are sleeping in class.

 

Seems most of the "tears" of penmanship classes could be avoided by use of fountain pens

and by having instructors who could actually explain how to write-

By that I mean how to use the speed of the pen movement in forming the curves- varying smoothly as a function of the curvature.

[KateGladstone]

Re:

... having instructors who could actually explain how to write-

 

Better yet, have instructors able to explain *and* *to* *demonstrate* how to write.

Most teachers today do not (cannot) demonstrate -- they simply require.

Standard operating procedure, today, for "learning handwriting" is to show the child, once, some completed letters -- on a chart or in a workbook or computer font -- with no indication of the stroke-order or direction, and to expect him/her to absorb this immediately and correctly, without any such "drudgery" as actually being taught.

Schools and school-districts that spend tens of thousands of dollars to teach a child how to hold a tennis-racket or a basketball will not spend one penny to teach the same child how to hold a pen. And if the teacher tries it, the teacher is (more often than not) condemned as an old-fashioned drudge or a petty tyrant.

 

One of the reasons that even something as wrong-headed as HWTears can make headway is that it makes what seems -- to today's teacher -- the radical cutting-edge novelty of actually giving children some information on where a stroke begins, what direction it should take, and so forth. Another reason, of course, is that HWTears claims its staff and disciples to be the *only* instructors, anywhere in the world, teaching anything about this. That is one of those statements that would be even more frightening if it held true -- that the situation has reached a point where it can be *believed* true is frightening enough.)

 

By the way:

Lisa N., your other point is extremely important: that the pen must smoothly slow down (even if only slightly) to negotiate curves and direction-changes (just as a car slows down to make turns.) Most people are never taught that -- some are, in fact, told that they are wrong if their pens slow down where necessary. (Yes, teachers who cannot demonstrate can still ridicule ... )

[eilu]

All I can say is that the method of teaching HWT (the wood forms, sponge-on-slate, clay forms etc.) seem very child-friendly. I've seen it used with kids having problems/developmental delays, plus it can be incorporated into play. Although I don't see why any teacher/school wanting a different writing style can't incorporate the child-friendly teaching methods (or a similar approach) to their curriculum. Better than what I got with the nuns way back...

Edited August 4, 2010 by eilu

[KateGladstone]

quote name='eilu' date='03 August 2010 - 08:38 PM' timestamp='1280896727' post='1632593']

All I can say is that the method of teaching HWT (the wood forms, sponge-on-slate, clay forms etc.) seem very child-friendly. I've seen it used with kids having problems/developmental delays, plus it can be incorporated into play. Although I don't see why any teacher/school wanting a different writing style can't incorporate the child-friendly teaching methods (or a similar approach) to their curriculum. Better than what I got with the nuns way back...

 

How would the wood forms be incorporated into teaching a style that was flowing and hand-friendly -- like this style, for instance?

 

Did you know that, whenever HWTears people find out that people who use a different style are using similar teaching tricks (which many good teachers use), they harass them for allegedly "stealing" parts of HWTears "because no other program but ours has anything interesting for children; therefore, this must have been stolen"? I have heard HWTears teachers claim -- and I have heard the founder herself claim -- that literally every non-HWTears teacher who uses play, crafts, multisensory materials (or even colorful materials such as colored chalk) has stolen the notion from HWTears: it is necessry for HWTears to claim this because they claim to be the "only" program that has such tricks (even though the Getty-Dubay Instructor's Manual, for instance, is filled literally cover-to-cover with such appealing and useful child-friendly tricks, and even more of them than HWTears has, every HWTears teacher will tell you -- apparently as an Artiicle Of Faith -- that no other program's teachers ever invented anything but dull, dismal, boring, pictureless copybooks and worksheets.

Edited August 4, 2010 by KateGladstone

[wallylynn]

"As someone once said "Letters should be designed by an artist and not an engineer".

 

+1 and beyond.....................it couldn't be said any better! :clap1:

 

 

John

NO, NO, NO! No more artists! Lettersforms are functional. They need to be engineered and if the form fails to meet said standards it is to be discarded and rejiggered. Artists give you comic-sans font and buildings that look like crumpled tin-foil that can't support their own weight. The very best engineers are able to successfully meld form and function like Spencerian and Apple computer.

 

HWT was designed neither by an artist nor engineer, but a chicken.

[eilu]

*snip*

 

How would the wood forms be incorporated into teaching a style that was flowing and hand-friendly -- like this style, for instance?

 

 

The wood forms in HWT- straights and curves- are more of letter building blocks, as in "looky, it's an 'A'!" so I figure it's more for teaching ABCs rather than writing them.

 

As for the legislative/copyright theft part... I only know one HWT instructor (in my country), and she isn't like that, so I can't really say anything about it.

Edited August 5, 2010 by eilu

[KateGladstone]

I've met some pretty scary HWTears instructors, and would like to meet the (apparently) nice one that Eilu knows. If Eilu can send me that instructor's contact-info, I would like this very much.

 

Re:

The wood forms in HWT- straights and curves- are more of letter building blocks, as in "looky, it's an 'A'!" so I figure it's more for teaching ABCs rather than writing them.

The "straights and curves" wouldn't do well for teaching letter-recognition of ABCs in Italic.

 

 

 

[msacco]

Yeah, that alphabet is butt ugly. This is my problem with these newer systems. They just lack aesthetics. I'd rather no handwriting at all if it's going to be this unpleasing to the eye. I don't get the fuss. Get out the Z&B manuals and drills. People can learn this if they really want to. Kids too.

 

Mike S.

Edited August 7, 2010 by msacco

[KateGladstone]

HWT was designed neither by an artist nor engineer, but a chicken.

 

 

And it's taught by a bunny and a frog --

 

not to mention an ant, a bug, and a bee:

see HWTears video below, on learning the number 6, from HWTears site's video library --

preferably after two shots of strong rye whiskey to kill the pain.

(Unfortunately, this is not issued to the students.)

 

The HWTears video library site starts up with a different video each time --

challenge your friends to see who can watch the longest, or the most, without screaming.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[KateGladstone]

HWT was designed neither by an artist nor engineer, but a chicken.

 

 

And it's taught by a bunny and a frog --

 

not to mention

If you have a high tolerance for cutesy-wootsie-ness,

peruse the HWTears site's video library --

preferably after two shots of strong rye whiskey to kill the pain.

(Unfortunately, such anesthetic is not issued to the students.)

 

The HWTears video library site starts up with a different video each time --

challenge your friends to see who can watch the longest, or the most, without screaming.

 

 

Oh -- did I mention they have a "handwriting camp" program for pre-teens and teens ...

and a program for adults --

all run as a franchise operation called "HandRIGHTing Ink"

(though the only ink they use comes out of a Bic: they despise fountain pens)?

 

Inevitably, they also run a special program for doctors

(this one at least mentions speed, but their top priority is getting the doctors legible in HWTears looped cursive:

unlike their non-medical adult program, which allows a choice between that and the firm's equally annoying print style.)

 

Why are they -- and not we -- running handwriting camps (or at least putting up videos on how to teach handwriting)?

 

By the way:

 

I've talked with survivors of the various HWTears enterprises for young and old.

Some were happy, some weren't --

but the happy ones didn't write very fast or legibly,

and the unhappy ones said the company had ignored their complaints about pain and poor results during and after the instruction.

 

All of them -- happy or unhappy, and of whatever age -- said that the atmosphere and content of the program were distinctly similar to the pre-school program.

 

 

 

 

[KateGladstone]

Re:

... the Z&B manuals and drills. People can learn this if they really want to. ...

 

Mike S.

 

People can learn almost anything if they really want to -- the existence of the Chinese writing system is proof of that!

 

But why would anyone "really want to" learn Z-B when there is Italic?

Msacco, you plainly love Z-B -- can you please explain why I should want to learn it?