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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: The dynamic tripod grasp for better handwriting

Dynamic tripod grip handwriting advice video
Children who hold their pencil or pen in the ideal handwriting position, the dynamic tripod grip, can write comfortably for longer. The National Handwriting Association's Catherine Elsey explains how to help your child establish a confident tripod grip and how it helps avoid hand pain.

Advice and tips to help establish the dynamic tripod grip (or grasp), the ideal hand position for handwriting as outlined by Occupational Paediatric Therapist Catherine Elsey from the National Handwriting Association.

Step-by-step guide to the dynamic tripod pencil grasp

Although handwriting may seem to be a dying art in our digital age, it's still an important skill for every child to master. As your child progresses through primary school, the amount of written work they're expected to produce - both in class and at home - will increase, and being able to write quickly, legibly and comfortably for long periods of time is essential to prevent them being left behind. 

Many people have unusual ways of holding their pencil that don't interfere with the way they write, but the dynamic tripod pencil grasp is considered to be the best starting point for neat, effortless handwriting, so helping your child to master it from a young age will give them an advantage in later years. The diagram below shows how to help your child to get to grips with the dynamic tripod grasp.

  1. Pinch the pencil (not too hard!) between the thumb and forefinger, at the point where the painted shaft begins.
  2. Rest the middle finger behind the shaft of the pencil: it acts like a shelf for the pencil to rest on.
  3. The ring finger and little finger should curl into the palm of the hand.
  4. The space formed by the thumb and forefinger (the thumb web space) should be round and open.
  5. The wrist should be resting on the paper, and below the writing line.
  6. The blunt end of the pencil should point towards your child's body – not forwards, sideways or straight up.

Check out our quick trick to help your child ensure they get the dynamic tripod grasp right every time.