Peterson Directed Handwriting is an amazing handwriting program. Reading through the website I felt as though I was having a teacher training in-service meeting. You can find information on the history, theory and methodology behind Peterson's and why their methods get good results. The website takes some time to navigate around, there's nothing flashy about it and it is chocked full of information. I recommend grabbing a yummy beverage of your choice, sitting back and really devoting some uninterrupted time to really soak in all their website has to offer. You won't be disappointed. :)
I was given the print E-worksheets for my review for levels K-1st. Although my product was intended for my younger students, I decided to have my 4th grader go through the program as her handwriting has evolved into something that would make a doctor green with envy. In other words, it was increasingly becoming more and more difficult to read! :) Since she was already a proficient, albeit sloppy, writer we moved through the first steps rather quickly. She practiced the movements required while saying the prompts to help develop a muscle memory found in the Print Step worksheets 1 and 2. We then moved onto the slant print sheets, found in the Print Step 3.
I could tell you all the reasons why I liked the program (and I will ;-)) but honestly, the best review I feel has to come from me sharing that my daughter loved working on her handwriting! Even though she is 9 and has gone through printing and cursive, she loved working on this program.
Everyday she asked me if we could do handwriting now and wouldn't stop asking until we sat down and did it. I saw a huge improvement in her writing within the first day. In the past, she would do a nice job in her handwriting book but it wouldn't transfer over to her everyday work. Since starting with Peterson's her handwriting, in all areas of school and pleasure, has been consistent and beautiful. That, to me, has got to be the best reason and review I could share out of all the other reasons why I liked this program. :)
Other reasons to like the program:
- It's been around since 1908 and has a proven track record.
- It's relatively inexpensive. Each non-consumable Print Step E - book is $19.95 for an individual license (which a homeschooler qualifies for)
- The customer service and support is phenomenal. They have live support in the form of a chat room where you can get all your questions answered by Mr. Pencil himself, Rand Nelson.
- There's special help for teaching lefties!
- They have the entire program available for you to see before you buy. The files are print disabled but are completely viewable for you to preview before you buy.
Peterson Directed Handwriting also provides teaching tools to help your student become a proficient writer. They have triangular pencils, pencil grippers, paper positioning guides, etc. to help your student achieve success in handwriting.
I'm looking forward to starting Peterson's with my 2nd grader with this new school year and I'll be purchasing their cursive program to use with my older three. They all have had cursive instruction but they definitely could use some polishing in their overall neatness and uniformity in letter formation. :)
To see other Crew Reviews for Peterson's Directed Handwriting, click here.
I received this product free for the purpose of reviewing it. I received no other compensation for this review. The opinions expressed in this review are my personal, honest opinions.
