The Palmer Method of Business Writing · Lesson 69 · Part 10: Figures
64. Drill 84: figure 8 and mixed figures
Goal: Your child makes figure 8 starting where the book's arrow shows, then writes mixed figures from dictation.
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 69 is drill 84, figure 8 (with an arrow showing where it starts) and the compound curve that leads into it, then a page of miscellaneous figures for study and practice.
The lesson, step by step
Warm up
About three minutes: compact ovals, then a line each of small o, small m and small l (drills 3, 11, 14 and 33).
Look at the model
Open the book page. Look at drill 84. The compound curve at the left on the first line leads into the 8; the arrow in the first figure shows where the 8 begins.
Rows of 8
Three lines.
Optional speed target: sixty to seventy a minute.
Figures from dictation
Now the miscellaneous figures. As the book suggests for class work, you call out figures in mixed order and your child writes them, small and separate. For example: 1, 0, 2, 6, 9, 8, 5, 4, 3, 0, 9, 6, 7. Three or four lines.
Optional speed target: ninety to one hundred figures a minute in class.
Gentle check
Your child compares their figures with the miscellaneous figures on the book page. All small? All separate?
Finish
Write a short list of prices or a shopping list with amounts.
Afterwards
A line of mixed figures from dictation at the end of each lesson for the next week.