Hellobee Boards Topic: How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?

Hellobee Boards Topic: How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers? https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Tue, 02 Jun 2026 10:45:12 +0000 ohapostrophe on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968670 Wed, 03 Dec 2014 07:45:18 +0000 ohapostrophe 1968670@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I'd try giving him a line to write on for all his letter practice, and making sure his grip is correct. In the grand scheme of things, not a huge deal, but certainly easier to fix now than later! mrbee on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968667 Wed, 03 Dec 2014 07:37:46 +0000 mrbee 1968667@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ohapostrophe: I don't think so... he uses his right hand for everything! ohapostrophe on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968665 Wed, 03 Dec 2014 07:34:51 +0000 ohapostrophe 1968665@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: he's not a lefty is he? travellingbee on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968661 Wed, 03 Dec 2014 07:22:52 +0000 travellingbee 1968661@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I'm a teacher too. I do agree that top down is what's important, not the exact stroke order. We don't teach handwriting anymore because there is no time with the insane number of state tests we are accountable for. But I wish we did. I do think it's important and I see many issues arise from poor penmanship (not just neatness- even math issues with keeping numbers aligned once you get to long multiplication and division!) blackbird on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968655 Wed, 03 Dec 2014 07:13:26 +0000 blackbird 1968655@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Huh, who knew. i actually don't hold a pencil correctly, and i hated to be corrected all the time about how to "write proper". but now nobody gives a shit now that I'm an adult :) ladybee on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968654 Wed, 03 Dec 2014 07:07:46 +0000 ladybee 1968654@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ohapostrophe: the whole time I've been reading this I keep singing in my head, "We always start our letters at the top." I'm a special education teacher and I push starting from the top and correct formation. I use Handwriting a Without Tears. @mrbee: meganmp on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968602 Wed, 03 Dec 2014 00:55:10 +0000 meganmp 1968602@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: In the upper grades, I've seen bottom up formation have more of an affect than stroke order, although I see both affect speed, fluidity and legibility. Kids who form their letters incorrectly seem to have a more difficult time writing than those who don't. As a side note, I don't teach the entire cursive alphabet, but I do teach them their signature. They have to sign a lot of papers-tests, IEPs, school contracts, etc. mrbee on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968554 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 23:04:12 +0000 mrbee 1968554@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @ohapostrophe: Interesting that you mention that... that's what concerned me the most. I noticed that sometimes he writes his 4s from the bottom up... going to talk to him about it this weekend! Mrs. Pen on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968552 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 23:02:28 +0000 Mrs. Pen 1968552@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I have never written a 5 like that! I know for sure I don't write 8's correctly; I draw two circles...And I do have legible handwriting- and I can write cursive. I think in some cases it's important, like cursive, and legibility. But not super important. ohapostrophe on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968523 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 22:32:49 +0000 ohapostrophe 1968523@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: From a visual-motor standpoint, the most important factor is forming the letter/number from the top-down. mrbee on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1968490 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 22:14:21 +0000 mrbee 1968490@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I talked to Charlie's teacher today, and she said that the key factor with stroke order is whether or not the child is willing to change and evolve over time. She explained that if she asks a child to change how they write a number and they do, that they will generally continue to improve. But if they insist on writing it a particular way, then they probably are set in their ways and that this can lead to problems later. Based on that, I do think that Charlie will be fine - he definitely is willing to change how he writes based on feedback! Just to be sure though, I'm going to review his numbers over the weekend and see which numbers he's struggling with. PurplePeony on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967519 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 12:46:23 +0000 PurplePeony 1967519@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Huh, I apparently write my 5s wrong all the time! I think stroke order is probably more important with letters than numbers. matador84 on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967458 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 12:17:48 +0000 matador84 1967458@https://boards.hellobee.com/ It's not an issue what he is doing. But, I was doing literacy research earlier this year and discovered that neatness in handwriting is typically tied to how successful a student is in reading in their formative years. I would concur with the research in my professional experience. Wouldn't worry about strokes for now! loki on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967409 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 12:00:18 +0000 loki 1967409@https://boards.hellobee.com/ i have nothing significant to add but... i don't write my number 5s properly, apparently! Andrea on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967403 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:57:27 +0000 Andrea 1967403@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I've noticed that DD's penmanship is a lot better if she uses the correct stroke order so I think it's important. And there have been a few letters/numbers that she's struggled with, but once I showed her the correct order, she's been able to write them with no further issues. erwoo on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967373 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:46:20 +0000 erwoo 1967373@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: We have a Leapster and one of the letter apps actually teaches strokes, but the touch screen isn't the best so if they lift the pen even slightly it wont recognize it. The one thing I don't like about it. But the model we have is older too. Otherwise, for those who have a LeapPad-ish they do sell cartridges for learning how to write letters and numbers and it's actually pretty good. .twist. on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967371 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:45:37 +0000 .twist. 1967371@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: Thanks so much! I will 100% download it and have him do some of it as part of his homework. :D THANK YOU. mrbee on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967365 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:43:22 +0000 mrbee 1967365@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @.twist.: There are some really awesome iPad apps for learning the stroke order of numbers, if your son is up for that! Can't remember them all, but Letter School is pretty great. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/letterschool-learn-to-write/id435476174?mt=8" rel="nofollow">https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/letterschool-learn-to-write/id435476174?mt=8</a> Maybe I'll do a light review of writing numbers this week with my son, just to see where the problems are... if it's just a few numbers, then maybe we'll focus there. Just wondering if I'm bringing my own biases to this, as someone raised on the important of stroke order! looch on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967364 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:43:19 +0000 looch 1967364@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @.twist.: so true. I think it's also important to make sure that left handers are identified early and not forced to use their right hands! erwoo on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967363 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:42:47 +0000 erwoo 1967363@https://boards.hellobee.com/ It's the same with Chinese characters as well. Stroke matters a lot, especially these days when you're typing in the word into your phone/tablet! One missed stroke and you might not get the word. At least for me. LOL! I use it a lot when I have to look up a word b/c I don't know what it is and sometimes I write it the wrong way. I don't think it matters as much in the U.S.; but I do know that Montessori schools in the U.S. (at least in Northern VA) still teach cursive. I think it's great and disappointed that they've stopped in a lot of states. I don't think they teach it at my son's Montessori school here but I will ask tomorrow now. My oldest's handwriting isn't the prettiest and he's the same with not writing the straight lines straight as well. I guess they will learn eventually? .twist. on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967362 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:41:41 +0000 .twist. 1967362@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @looch: That depends! If you are right handed and were taught proper cursive, I agree. No one took the time to teach me proper cursive as a left handed individual and I was taught how to do it the "correct" way, for a right handed person. Which makes me VERY slow and sloppy. I print much faster than I can handwrite. ETA: I am a perfect example about why proper stroke is important. PurplePumps on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967357 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:39:57 +0000 PurplePumps 1967357@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Dont think it's a big deal for English. For Chinese/Japanese/etc... then yea, it'd be a big deal! looch on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967356 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:39:45 +0000 looch 1967356@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @Mamaof2: it's too bad, because it is much more efficient than printing. Mamaof2 on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967354 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:38:30 +0000 Mamaof2 1967354@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: @looch: @.twist.: no cursive here either - haven't done it in YEARS - my 20 yr old niece has no idea how to read or write cursive .twist. on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967352 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:37:15 +0000 .twist. 1967352@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: I think how it's made is a key in how it will look. It honestly really frustrates us, as parents. He's gotten into such a habit now that nagging him about it, and getting him to change the way he does it, just seems futile now.... .twist. on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967348 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:35:42 +0000 .twist. 1967348@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: @looch: They don't where we are. :( mrbee on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967335 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:33:36 +0000 mrbee 1967335@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @looch: Oh wow, that's neat! I had heard it's been dropped in a lot of places, but will check with my son's teacher to see if they still teach it here. @.twist.: I would also love to hear from a teacher or professional! My general sense is that my son's school cares a lot more about how the writing looks than how it was made... but will ask about that too. Mamaof2 on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967334 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:33:35 +0000 Mamaof2 1967334@https://boards.hellobee.com/ Yes it is - DS's K teacher has sent home worksheets that emphasize stroke order. That said DS doesn't always follow it - he likes to start at the bottom for some reason - we are working on it! Madison43 on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967320 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:30:32 +0000 Madison43 1967320@https://boards.hellobee.com/ I wrote all the letters and numbers backwards as a little kid, and my teachers definitely emphasized stroke order as a means to correct it. loveisstrange on "How important is stroke order in writing letters and numbers?" https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/how-important-is-stroke-order-in-writing-letters-and-numbers#post-1967319 Tue, 02 Dec 2014 11:30:29 +0000 loveisstrange 1967319@https://boards.hellobee.com/ @mrbee: I guess I'd never really thought about it, but I can see how that would affect penmanship. I remember being taught cursive and penmanship in elementary school and I generally have good handwriting, so maybe I just don't have a grasp on how it truly makes a difference. @.twist.: I think that's a legitimate point. Movement of any kind has a way of becoming more and more efficient over time, so I would assume the accepted method of teaching writing would maximize that.