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      The first join: aw, ap, an, ar with lead in

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can correctly form the first join with a lead in and lead out.

      Key learning points

      1. All the letters have a lead in and a lead out.
      2. Cursive letter joins refer to how the letters connect together.
      3. The pencil does not lift when forming the join.
      4. The letter r lead out has a dip down to aid joining.
      5. The letter w lead out finishes with a dip to aid joining.

      Keywords

      • Cursive - style of handwriting where the letters are joined together in a flowing and connected manner

      • Lead in - the stroke or line that guides us into starting a letter

      • Lead out - the stroke or line that guides us to smoothly finish a letter

      • Baseline - this is the line that most letters sit on

      • X-height line - this is the line that x-height letters reach

      Common misconception

      Children will often want to take their pencil off to form the join.

      Emphasise the flowing motion of cursive writing. The letters need to be joined together so the pencil needs to stay on the page.

      Teacher tip

      Give the children a visual of the letters being joined together by holding hands. If you lift your pencil then you are breaking the connection and they can't hold hands.

      Content guidance

      Risk assessment required - physical activity

      Supervision

      Adult supervision required

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0
      except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions
      (Collection 2).

      Lesson video

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      Prior knowledge starter quiz

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Match the capital letters to their corresponding lower case letters.

      Correct Answer:A,a

      a

      Correct Answer:B,b

      b

      Correct Answer:C,c

      c

      Correct Answer:D,d

      d

      Correct Answer:E,e

      e

      Correct Answer:F,f

      f

      Q2.
      Match the capital letters with corresponding lower case letters.

      Correct Answer:G,g

      g

      Correct Answer:H,h

      h

      Correct Answer:I,i

      i

      Correct Answer:J,j

      j

      Correct Answer:K,k

      k

      Correct Answer:L,l

      l

      Q3.
      Select the correct pre-cursive formation of the letter w.

      An image in a quiz
      Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
      An image in a quiz
      An image in a quiz

      Q4.
      Select the correct pre-cursive formation of the letter r.

      An image in a quiz
      Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
      An image in a quiz
      An image in a quiz

      Q5.
      Select the correct pre-cursive formation of the letter h.

      Correct Answer: An image in a quiz
      An image in a quiz
      An image in a quiz
      An image in a quiz

      Q6.
      True or false. Cursive handwriting involves lifting your pencil between each letter.

      Correct Answer: false, False

      To help you plan your 2 English lesson on: The first join: aw, ap, an, ar with lead in, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...