Handwriting

At the historic menses of xvi my older blood brother started writing inwards the fashion of the wording used on the comprehend of Siamese Dream yesteryear Smashing Pumpkins. I believe the font is Agatha.

He did it really well, with meticulous attending to detail, though it must conduct hold slowed him downwards considerably inwards his H5N1 degree exams. He is forthwith a 37 twelvemonth onetime solicitor too I tin dismiss however run across the Smashing Pumpkins' influence inwards his handwriting.

In typical younger sis style, I attempted to re-create his cool handwriting. I wasn't every bit dedicated every bit he was, but I did get to pose a claw on the piece of work yesteryear of the alphabetic quality a. I hooked the alphabetic quality a throughout my H5N1 levels, academy too my career prior to teaching.

During my NQT twelvemonth this hooked a started causing me problems. My handwriting on the board is messy, too my students were oft confused when I wrote the alphabetic quality a inwards algebra. They couldn't say if it was a alphabetic quality or a number. It looked similar an ugly 2. Over the class of my NQT twelvemonth I made a witting elbow grease to halt hooking the alphabetic quality a, too every bit a final result my students no longer asked me to translate my handwriting. Well, until terminal week...

The crossed Z
I was going through a Normal Distribution event on the board when a Year thirteen raised his hand.

'Miss, what does that symbol represent?'

I was flummoxed for a second. This shape were studying S2 - they'd learnt the Standard Normal Distribution inwards Year 12, too then the annotation should travel familiar. I looked at what I'd written on the board:

'What symbol? The Z?'
'Oh, is that a Z?'
'Yes, it's a Z.'
'Why does it conduct hold a work through it?'
'That's what Z looks like. Or mayhap it's only how I write it. I suppose it's too then it doesn't acquire confused with a 2. Does anyone else hither cross their Zs?'
All eleven students milk tremble their heads.
'Oh. I idea everyone did. I'm non certain when I started doing it. But I e'er cross my Zs.'

I wrote the tidings lazy on the board to demonstrate my crossed z. They looked at me similar I was crazy. Self dubiety crept in.

I did a Twitter poll too thankfully it confirmed that the agency I write the alphabetic quality Z is totally normal (pardon the pun) with maths folk:

Most tweeters confirmed that they cross their Zs to avoid confusion with 2s, inwards the same agency crossing 7s avoids confusion with 1s.

I had a fascinating tweet from air traffic controller @jlaa who has to brand certain he doesn't cross his 7s because a crossed vii has a really specific meaning. The motion painting below shows flying details written on strips - both present that the aircraft has been told to descend from 7000ft to 5000ft. In the bottom motion painting it is rubber to number 7000ft to some other flying but inwards the piece of work yesteryear motion painting it isn't. He has to travel really careful non to automatically cross his 7s.

Does handwriting matter?
I instruct a Year thirteen Further Maths shape too most of them are going to report maths or engineering at university. I talked to them most mathematical handwriting for the commencement fourth dimension terminal week. They were interested, too it led to discussions most annotation such every bit the role of dots for multiplication too commas for decimal points. I felt similar it was a tidings worth having.

When letters are unclear inwards words nosotros tin dismiss unremarkably translate the pregnant yesteryear considering the context or looking at the other letters. But when letters too numbers are unclear inwards mathematics nosotros powerfulness non conduct hold whatever clues. This tin dismiss travel a work for testify markers, especially if they are marking private questions too then can't bring upward to the residual of the newspaper for clarity. My colleague told me she has a Year 10 pupil who writes the numerals ix too iv inwards exactly the same way. He may good terminate upward losing marks inwards his GCSE because of this.

Here's some pictures from my Year thirteen students' mock C3 exams. The commencement pupil has problem with his ones. He hooks the piece of work yesteryear too draws a work at the bottom too then they sometimes expect similar twos. In this motion painting it's clear, but exclusively because at that spot are twos at that spot for comparison.

Here's the same enquiry answered yesteryear some other of my Year 13s. This boy's brackets drive me crazy. Since September I've been complaining that his brackets are besides much similar modulus signs. He is clearly trying to educate this because the slight bend on the correct bracket is an improvement on what I've seen previously.

Later inwards the newspaper his brackets acquire fifty-fifty straighter.

I volition hold to berate him for this inwards the promise that he volition milk tremble the habit. 

Good practice
I recall that guidance on mathematical handwriting should travel delivered inwards Year 7. The importance of clear handwriting - too tips such every bit the crossing of the vii too the Z - should travel made explicit. This post service Tips for mathematical handwriting is a expert starting betoken (though teachers from exterior the the United States of America won't travel happy with the alphabetic quality x here!).

Christian Perfect picked upward on this international x discrepancy a few years agone - his article Let's beak most X is worth a read.

I conduct hold a pupil who does 'joined up' xs (ie he doesn't accept his pen off the paper) - run across motion painting below. They expect similar ns. Making x expect similar n is pretty unusual. Do your students conduct hold whatever odd handwriting habits?

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Further Reading

• Old Pappus' Book of Mathematical Calligraphy
• A Guide to Writing Mathematics 
• Ten Simple Rules for Mathematical Writing (via Colleen Young's post service Mathematical Handwriting)