English Rewind - Weekender: Handwriting ✍️✍️✍️

Hello! Catherine here from BBC Learning English.

Just so you know, this programme is from the BBC Learning English archive.

It was originally broadcast in December 2006 on our website.

Enjoy!

BBC Learning English dot com.

Hello, I'm Anna Jones and you're listening to Weekender

and this week we're talking about handwriting.

Just how much can you tell about a person's personality

just by looking at how they write?

And why do some people prefer to write with a pencil rather than with a pen?

Well, to answer those questions, we're joined in today's programme

by handwriting expert Adam Brand and poet Kate Bingham.

Have a listen now to Adam who's describing the personality

of someone whose writing 'slants' or 'slopes' to the left.

What are the words he uses to describe the personality

of a person whose writing leans to the left?

When you have left-slant writing and close word spacing,

what you've got is somebody who values their privacy,

yet has adapted to ease in social relationships.

The other thing are the margins and the left margin's quite wide,

so somebody of very high standards, at the same time slightly reserved again,

but the right margin is very straight and that's a sign of self-control.

Well, according to Adam, if your writing slants to the left

and if the words are very near to each other

then you are likely to be 'slightly reserved' —

you don't show your feeling easily and may be quiet or shy.

He says that you may display 'self-control' —

you are able to control your emotions and your actions.

Adam also says that you will have 'very high standards' —

you'll set yourself high moral rules to follow.

You also 'value your privacy' —

you appreciate your right to keep your personal matters and relationships secret.

So Adam is able to tell a lot about somebody's personality

simply by looking at their handwriting.

Here he is again.

Listen out for the words he uses to describe this person's personality.

'Slightly reserved', 'self-controlled',

'very high standards' and 'value your privacy'.

When you have left-slant writing and close word spacing,

what you've got is somebody who values their privacy

yet has adapted to ease to social relationships.

The other thing are the margins and the left margin's quite wide,

so somebody of very high standards, at the same time slightly reserved again,

but the right margin is very straight and that's a sign of self-control.

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Adam goes on to talk about the importance of children learning how to do 'cursive'

or 'joined-up' writing from a young age.

He says that it is more important that children learn to do joined-up writing

than worry about whether they write with a pen or a pencil.

Why is this? Well, Adam says that studies in Canada

found that children who learn cursive writing are much more 'self-confident' —

they feel good and confident about themselves as individuals.

What's the other word he uses which has a similar meaning to 'self-confident'?

When it comes to teaching, I don't think it's the instrument that you use

as much as how you're taught.

It's very important that children are taught cursive writing immediately

and the reason for that is print writing is about form,

cursive writing is about movement.

And they've done studies in Canada

where they've found that children who are taught cursive immediately

have far better self-esteem, much more self-confident.

The word Adam uses which has a very similar meaning to 'self-confident'

is 'self-esteem'. Here's Adam again.

When it comes to teaching, I don't think it's the instrument that you use

as much as how you're taught.

It's very important that children are taught cursive writing immediately

and the reason for that is print writing is about form,

cursive writing is about movement.

And they've done studies in Canada

where they've found that children who are taught cursive immediately

have far better self-esteem, much more self-confident.

Kate Bingham is a poet and, unlike Adam,

she does think that the choice of instrument

is important for her when she writes.

What does she use to write with?

I use a pencil.

When you're drafting, it's a little bit like sketching

and I put words all over the page.

It's a bit like a pictogram almost and a pencil is perfect for me.

Kate uses a pencil.

She says that when she is 'drafting' —

when she puts ideas and thoughts down onto paper,

she says it's like sketching or drawing.

She puts words all over the page and it becomes almost like a picture

and a pencil is the perfect instrument for her to draft her ideas.

She says she prefers working with a pencil and paper than writing on computer.

Why does she say that?

If you're writing to a screen, then you have to sit up

and your line of sight is different and if you're with a piece of paper,

you tend to bend over

and I think there's a different kind of, a different quality of concentration.

Well, Kate says that if she writes at a computer screen

then her 'line of sight' is different —

her view of the words is not the same on the screen

as when she writes on a piece of paper.

She also says that her concentration is better.

She has to bend over the paper to work

and this make her concentrate more intently on what she's writing.

Well, that's about all we have time for today.

Have a look at your own handwriting and see what it reveals about you!

BBC Learning English dot com.