SMHP is MEASURABLE.
Star-worthiness is the objective in the Size Matters Handwriting Program. Stars are earned by making your letters the right size. That makes collecting data is extremely easy. SMHP uses simple rubrics and formulas. There are no tables to reference. No need to spend hours tabulating or analyzing your findings. It’s elementary algebra.
Basically, it’s a matter of counting letters:
- The total number of letters printed goes in the denominator.
- The number of letters printed the correct size goes into the numerator.
From that, you’ll get easily calculated percentages. If that ratio cannot be mentally converted to a percentage, whip out your calculator. That’s it! Yep… Scoring takes seconds.
Teachers, kids, and parents can score. And kids can score each other.
There is something magical about seeing a constellation of stars on a student’s work page. For one… it makes them want to print more.
Additionally, many therapists report that their students track them down in the hallways to come to their classrooms and see their printing.
Be Star-worthy! Shoot for the stars.
SMHP supports the OT PRACTICE FRAMEWORK.
Remember the tenets of the OT Practice Framework:
When your clients or students are involved in the process, whether its decision making about their goals or scoring their progress, the level of investment is multiplied.
Furthermore, the OT Practice Framework emphasizes the importance of advocacy. In our case, it is not about OTs advocating for the importance of OT.
This is about kids advocating for themselves.
- Learning what they need and how to ask for it.
- Learning about the type of paper they work best on and seeking it out.
- Learning how to measure their printing efforts and score their written work.
Self-Advocacy is a critical part of the Size Matters Handwriting Program. And the great news is that research shows that when children have a say in their practice, there is an inherent Buy-In. This is a HUGE draw!
