Why do some students struggle to copy from the board?

You know some children struggle to copy neatly and accurately from the board, but why?

Well aside from their fine motor control there are a number of contributing factors, one of which is the vestibular system.

Things to be aware of :

The vestibular system gives us our sense of balance, co-ordination and movement. The vestibular receptors are located in the inner ear and are activated every time we move or change our head position. 

When children copy from the board their heads move up and down frequently. Among other things, the vestibular system influences coordinating eye movement. Some pupils have inaccurate vestibular processing.

Those with poor working memory will have to look up and down more frequently than others. Working memory is the system we have for holding information in mind for a short time while we use it to solve problems or make decisions. 

Things to do:

  • Identify the children in your class who find it more difficult.

  • Ask your class how they find copying from the board. 

  • Listen and note down individuals who say they find it challenging and how they describe the experience.

  • Give them a paragraph to copy from the board and give yourself space to be present and observe for yourself. Make notes. 

  • Experiment with using different colours for sections of text (and background) to help pupils track where they’ve got to. Remember to explain WHY you’ve used colour in this way and ASK them what is helpful and what is not. 

  • Children who have noticeable difficulty can be provided with a paper version to copy from so there is less head movement required.

Over time and with encouragement they can reflect about how much information they are able to hold in working memory for copying. They can also be taught strategies such as:

  • repeating sections aloud to support remembering

  • crossing out information as they go to help keep track

  • reading back frequently to spot omissions (including whole line omissions!)

  • explaining what they’ve copied in their own words to decide if they understand the content. 

  • asking questions if they don’t

Developing self-awareness, understanding and practical strategies empowers individuals.