Papers of Rosemary Sassoon

Comprises handwriting examples of pupils and teachers; teaching resources; articles; photographs and slides of children writing; papers relating to training provided by Sassoon and conferences in the UK, Australia and the USA; 'Joins in Children's Handwriting, and the Effects of Different Models and Teaching Methods', by Rosemary Sassoon - thesis submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Typography and Communication, University of Reading, May 1988; papers regarding back pain in education; papers and items relating to Sassoon Type.

The majority of the materials cover Rosemary Sassoon's main period of work, 1980s-2000s, but there are several files containing research materials dating back to 1887 at the earliest.

Rosemary Sassoon (b.1931) specialises in the educational and medical aspects of handwriting. In 1988 she completed a PhD from the Department of Typography and Graphic Communication at the University of Reading on 'Joins in Children's Handwriting, and the Effects of Different Models and Teaching Methods'. She spent two years researching and designing a typeface that used letterforms which children found easy to read. The subsequent design is the Sassoon Primary typeface. Since 1987 Sassoon has, in partnership with Adrian Williams, developed a range of font products for reading and handwriting education in schools. These typefaces are now used worldwide for both the teaching and reading of handwriting. She has written several books on handwriting, including: 'Computers and Typography' (Contributing Editor); 'The Art and Science of Handwriting'; 'The Acquisition of a Second Writing System'; 'Signs, Symbols and Icons' (written in conjunction with Albertine Gaur); 'Handwriting of the Twentieth Century'; 'The Designer'.

Open

There may be restrictions to some sections of the collection which will be closed under the Data Protection Act. Please contact the archives for further details.

A reader wishing to publish any quotation of information, including pictorial, derived from any archive material must apply in writing for prior permission from the Archivist or other appropriate person(s) as indicated by the Archivist. A limited number of photocopies may be supplied at the discretion of the Archivist.

The original accession was transferred from the University of Reading in 2007. Further papers have been given to the Archives by Rosemary Sassoon in several accessions 2007-2009.