Final answer:
Asking students to write lengthy compositions by hand before mastering letter formation is counterproductive. The writing process includes planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing, which should be the focus over perfect handwriting. Incremental effort and resilience are key to writing success.
Step-by-step explanation:
It is counterproductive to ask students to write lengthy compositions by hand before they have automatized good letter-formation habits. The writing process is crucial for developing effective writing skills, and it involves several stages that go beyond just the act of writing. Students need to learn the mechanics of writing alongside practicing their writing to eventually produce high-quality work.
Following the writing process is a strategy recommended by writing experts, which can greatly aid a student in crafting good compositions. This process usually includes planning, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. During the initial stages, students should focus on organizing their thoughts and content, which is more important than the physical act of writing itself. An emphasis on the mechanics can follow once the content is laid out.
Building good letter-formation habits is essential, but this should not impede the flow of ideas, especially in the earlier phases of writing development. Consequently, expecting verbose handwritten work from young students can be detrimental to their writing development. Instead, it is beneficial to allow them to express their ideas freely, with a focus on structure and coherence, before expecting polished handwriting.
It's also essential to teach resilience in writing, as it is a skill that develops over time with incremental effort. Perfection should not be the target in the first drafts, and students must be allowed to make mistakes and learn from them. The quality of writing improves as students become more comfortable with the writing process and as their handwriting skills improve naturally.