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How to use music in your handwriting lessons

Writing Time 8/2/24

To make your next handwriting lesson sing, why not add some music to increase those engagement levels and have your students counting down to their next handwriting lesson.

Warm up those wrists

Just as you’d have your students complete a warmup activity before participating in a sporting game, the same applies for handwriting.

Consider this the ‘hook’ of your lesson.

Put on some fun, upbeat music and guide your students to shake their wiggles out, warm up their wrist muscles and get their writing fingers ready.

Press play on a Writing Time tune

In the Foundation year, students begin their handwriting journey with our Writing Time Hero Lines – a unique, contextual code that represents the most common handwriting shapes.

Not only do Hero Lines help students decode and write letters, the related Hero Line songs get students moving, singing and practising their gross motor skills before they dive into fine motor skill activities.

Best of all, access to these songs through Writing Time Online is free! Sign up today at writingtimeonline.com.au.

Use music as a motivator

Have students copy a short text while listening to slow-paced, relaxing music; the focus is on accuracy and legibility. Next, repeat the activity using faster music, with a focus on speed and legibility. Ask students to compare the results and reflect on the differences between their two writing samples.

Make it mindful

Implementing mindful breaks and activities in the classroom has been proven to have a profoundly positive impact on students.

According to a meta-analysis of 70+ studies comparing more than 6,000 school aged youngsters, those who practised mindfulness showed better emotional regulation, academic performance and social skills than their counter parts.¹

An easy way to infuse mindfulness into your classroom is to add calming background music to an activity that already exists within your timetable – you need look no further than your handwriting lessons!

Studies have shown that music can improve performance on simple tasks (Gonzalez & Aiello, 2019)². So next time your students reach for their Writing Time books, make it mindful by playing some relaxing music to accompany the lesson.

References

1. Smiling Mind, Benefits of mindfulness in education, viewed 9 February 2024, https://www.smilingmind.com.au/mindfulness-in-education↩
2. Saavedra, E & Alexander, H 2022, How can integrating music into your classroom benefit student learning and development?, National Centre on Safe Supportive Learning Environments, viewed 9 February 2024, https://safesupportivelearning.ed.gov/voices-field/how-does-music-benefit-your-classroom-or-school-community-most↩

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