Foundation 1 

Foundation 2 

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Years 5 & 6 

Foundation 1/3–5 years

DEVELOPING GROSS MOTOR SKILLS
The vocabulary of movement
Large movements
Responding to music

DEVELOPING FINE MOTOR SKILLS
Hand and finger play
Making and modelling
Links to art
Using one-handed tools and equipment

DEVELOPING PATTERNS AND BASIC LETTER MOVEMENTS
Pattern making
Responding to music
Investigating straight line patterns
Investigating loops
Investigating circles
Investigating angled patterns
Investigating eights and spirals

Foundation 2/Primary 1

Term 2
Introducing long ladder letters:
Practising long ladder letters:
Practising long ladder letters:
Practising long ladder letters:
Practising all the long ladder letters
Introducing one-armed robot letters:
Practising one-armed robot letters:
Practising one-armed robot letters:
Practising one-armed robot letters:
Practising all the one-armed robot letters
Introducing capitals for one-armed robot letters:
Introducing capitals for long ladder letters:

Term 3
Introducing curly caterpillar letters:
Practising curly caterpillar letters:
Practising curly caterpillar letters:
Practising curly caterpillar letters:
Practising curly caterpillar letters:
Practising all the curly caterpillar letters
Introducing zig-zag monster letters:
Practising zig-zag monster letters:
Introducing capitals for curly caterpillar letters:
Introducing capitals for zig-zag monster letters:
Exploring

Year 1/Primary 2

Term 1
Letter formation practice: long ladder family
Letter formation practice: one-armed robot family
Letter formation practice: curly caterpillar family
Letter formation practice: zig-zag monster family
Practising the vowels:
Practising the vowels:
Practising the vowels:
Practising the vowels:
Practising the vowels:
Letter formation practice: capital letters

Term 2
Introducing diagonal join to ascender: joining
Practising diagonal join to ascender: joining
Practising diagonal join to ascender: joining
Practising diagonal join to ascender: joining
Introducing diagonal join, no ascender: joining
Practising diagonal join, no ascender: joining
Practising diagonal join, no ascender: joining
Introducing diagonal join, no ascender, to an anticlockwise letter: joining
Practising diagonal join, no ascender, to an anticlockwise letter: joining
Practising diagonal join, no ascender, to an anticlockwise letter: joining

Term 3
Practising diagonal join, no ascender:
joining
Practising diagonal join, no ascender:
joining
Practising diagonal join, no ascender:
joining
Introducing horizontal join, no ascender: joining
Practising horizontal join, no ascender:
joining
Introducing horizontal join, no ascender, to
an anticlockwise letter: joining
Practising horizontal join, no ascender, to
an anticlockwise letter: joining
Introducing horizontal join to ascender: joining
Practising horizontal join to ascender:
joining
Introducing horizontal and diagonal joins to ascender, to an anticlockwise letter: joining
Assessment

Year 2/Primary 3

Term 1
How to join in a word: high frequency words
Introducing the break letters:
Practising diagonal join to ascender in words:
Practising diagonal join, no ascender, in words:
Practising diagonal join, no ascender, to an anticlockwise letter in words:
Practising horizontal join, no ascender, in words:
Practising horizontal join, no ascender, in words:
Practising horizontal join, no ascender, to an anticlockwise letter in words:
Practising horizontal join to ascender in words:
Practising horizontal join to ascender in words:

Term 2
Practising diagonal join to r:
Practising horizontal join to r:
Introducing horizontal join from r to ascender:
Introducing horizontal join from r:
Practising joining to and from r:
Introducing diagonal join to s:
Introducing horizontal join to s:
Introducing diagonal join from s to ascender:
Introducing diagonal join from s, no ascender:
Introducing horizontal join from r to an anticlockwise letter:

Term 3
Practising diagonal join to an anticlockwise letter:
Introducing horizontal join to and from f to ascender:
Introducing horizontal join from f, no ascender:
Introducing (diagonal join, no ascender)
Introducing (horizontal join, no ascender)
Introducing (diagonal join, no ascender, to an anticlockwise letter)
Introducing (horizontal join to ascender)
Capital letter practice: height of ascenders and capitals
Assessment
Assessment

Year 3/Primary 4

Term 1
Revising joins in a word: long vowel phonemes
Revising joins in a word:
Revising joins in a word:
Revising joins in a word: high frequency words
Revising joins in a word: new vocabulary
Revising joins in a word:
Revising joins to and from s:
Revising joins to and from r:
Revising joins to and from f:
Revising joins:

Term 2
Introducing joining b and p: diagonal join,
no ascender,
Practising joining b and p: diagonal join,
no ascender, to an anticlockwise letter,

Practising joining b and p: diagonal join to ascender,
Relative sizes of letters: silent letters
Parallel ascenders: high frequency words
Parallel ascenders: adding y to words
Relative size and consistency:
Relative size and consistency: capitals
Speed and fluency practice:
Speed and fluency practice: opposites

Term 3
Consistency in spacing:
Consistency in spacing:
Consistency in spacing: apostrophes
Layout, speed and fluency practice: address
Layout, speed and fluency practice: dialogue
Layout, speed and fluency practice: poem
Layout speed and fluency practice: letter
Handwriting style: calligrams
Assessment
Handwriting style: acrostics

Year 4/Primary 5

Term 1
Revising joins in a word:
Revising joins in a word:
Revising joins in a word:
Revising joins in a word:
Revising joins in a word:
Revising parallel ascenders:
Revising parallel ascenders and descenders:
Revising joins to an anticlockwise letter:

Revising break letters: dictionary work and alphabetical order
Linking spelling and handwriting: related words

Term 2
Introducing sloped writing
Parallel ascenders:
Parallel descenders and break letters:
Size, proportion and spacing:
Size, proportion and spacing:
Size, proportion and spacing:
Speed and fluency: abbreviations for notes
Speed and fluency: notemaking
Speed and fluency: drafting
Speed and fluency: lists

Term 3
Size, proportion and spacing:
Size, proportion and spacing:
Size, proportion and spacing:
Size, proportion and spacing:
Speed and fluency:
Speed and fluency: diminutives
Print alphabet: captions, headings, labels
Print capitals: posters
Assessment
Presentational skills: font styles

Year 5&6/Primary 6&7

Year 5 Handwriting
Revision: practising sloped writing
Revision: practising the joins
Developing style for speed: joining from
Developing style for speed: looping from and
Developing style for speed: joining from
Developing style for speed: joining from
Developing style for speed: writing
and at speed
Developing style for speed: pen breaks in longer words
Different styles for different purposes
Assessment

Year 5 Project work
Haiku project: making notes
Haiku project: organising ideas
Haiku project: producing a draft
Haiku project: publishing the haiku
Haiku project: evaluation
Letter project: making notes
Letter project: structuring an argument
Letter project: producing a draft
Letter project: publishing a letter
Letter project: evaluation

Year 6 Handwriting
Self-assessment: evaluating handwriting
Self-assessment: checking the joins
Self-assessment: consistency of size
Self-assessment: letters resting on baseline
Self-assessment: ascenders and descenders
Self-assessment: consistency of size of capitals and ascenders
Writing at speed: inappropriate closing of letters
Writing at speed: identifying unclosed letters
Writing at speed: spacing within words
Writing at speed: spacing between words