The Palmer Method of Business Writing · Lesson 15 · Part 4: First small letters
15. Drill 13: the over-motion for m and n
Goal: Your child makes the rounded over-motion that forms m and n, in two sizes, while counting steadily.
You'll need
- Wide-ruled lined paper (several sheets)
- A sharp pencil or a smooth gel pen
- The book open at today's page
- A watch, clock or phone timer that shows seconds (only for the optional speed check)
What's in the book
Lesson 15, "More about counting," explains why counting helps and lists four causes of poor letters. Drill 13 is a row of rounded over-motion exercises, first half a space tall, then as small as small o.
The lesson, step by step
Warm up
About three minutes: compact ovals (drill 3), a line of capital A (drill 6) and a line of small o (drill 11). The book asks for this opening at every lesson from here on.
Why we count
In writing, as in music, regularity of movement is an important factor.
The book lists four causes of a poor letter: poor position, stiff muscles, no clear picture of the letter in the mind, and the wrong direction of movement.
Look at the model
Open the book page. Look at drill 13: a row of rounded humps, like a very long m. In the first line it fills half the space between the ruled lines; in the second it is only as tall as small o.
Count it
Ten humps to a section. Count 1 to 10, or say the book's verbal count:
Over, over, over, over, over, light, light, light, light, light.
Two lines of each size.
Optional speed target: about fourteen sections of the first line and sixteen of the second in a minute.
Watch for
Round tops, not sharp ones. Sharp tops mean there is not enough over-motion.
Gentle check and finish
Ask your child to point to their roundest humps. Finish by writing "mom" once, small.