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Important update from TheSchoolRun

For the past 13 years, TheSchoolRun has been run by a small team of mums working from home, dedicated to providing quality educational resources to primary school parents. Unfortunately, rising supplier costs and falling revenue have made it impossible for us to continue operating, and we’ve had to make the difficult decision to close. The good news: We’ve arranged for another educational provider to take over many of our resources. These will be hosted on a new portal, where the content will be updated and expanded to support your child’s learning.

What this means for subscribers:

  • Your subscription is still active, and for now, you can keep using the website as normal — just log in with your usual details to access all our articles and resources*.
  • In a few months, all resources will move to the new portal. You’ll continue to have access there until your subscription ends. We’ll send you full details nearer the time.
  • As a thank you for your support, we’ll also be sending you 16 primary school eBooks (worth £108.84) to download and keep.

A few changes to be aware of:

  • The Learning Journey weekly email has ended, but your child’s plan will still be updated on your dashboard each Monday. Just log in to see the recommended worksheets.
  • The 11+ weekly emails have now ended. We sent you all the remaining emails in the series at the end of March — please check your inbox (and spam folder) if you haven’t seen them. You can also follow the full programme here: 11+ Learning Journey.

If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. Thank you for being part of our journey it’s been a privilege to support your family’s learning.

*If you need to reset your password, it will still work as usual. Please check your spam folder if the reset email doesn’t appear in your inbox.

Video: correct handwriting grip and positioning for new writers

Handwriting advice: grip and positioning for new writers
Help your child establish great handwriting habits from Reception and KS1 with our expert advice video for the parents of new writers. From the correct pencil grip to paper positioning and posture, the National Handwriting Association's Catherine Elsey explains what to look out for and how to make immediate improvements to help your child.

Does your child hold their pencil correctly? Establish great handwriting habits from Reception and KS1 with our video of handwriting advice for new writers, packed with practical tips and suggestions from Catherine Elsey, Occupational Paediatric Therapist from the National Handwriting Association.

Help your new writer develop good habits

If your child started school already able to write their own name – and maybe a few other words, too – you probably felt pretty proud.

But in fact, Reception teachers generally prefer children to arrive at school with no previous knowledge of writing, other than mark-making and drawing. Why? Because it can be difficult to correct bad habits, such as a poor pencil grasp or incorrect letter formation, once a child has learned them.

So how can you encourage your child to develop good writing habits in Reception and KS1 that will set them up for life?

    • Help your child master the dynamic tripod pencil grasp. Children usually develop this ability somewhere between four and six years of age. They should pinch the pencil between thumb and forefinger at the place where the point meets the shaft, with their middle finger behind for the pencil to rest on. Check out this quick trick for getting the dynamic tripod grasp right every time.
    • The blunt end of your child's pencil should be pointing towards the shoulder of their writing arm – not forwards, sideways or straight up.
    • They should turn their paper so it's angled slightly upwards. This helps the wrist and hand move in the most natural way when writing, and also means your child can see the pencil tip, rather than it being hidden behind their hand.
    • Your child's free hand should be used to steady the paper and bear some of their body weight.
    • If your child is struggling with their pencil grasp or writing position, talk to their teacher about whether a handwriting aid such as a pencil grip or a slanted surface could help.