Handwriting in the News

Computers and gadgets are great for children to experience, but remember to include handwriting instruction and regular practice in their day. Draw and write with your children—make it fun for both of you! This video was on our local news station last night:

A study is mentioned that found the following:

KING5 HealthLink, Good handwriting in children translates to good grades

My child is 10...

“My child is 10 and she hates writing.
What can I do to help?”

Focus on drawing, and add a little writing on the side! Keep in mind that an older child is pretty well engrained with their handwriting habits. Be patient, have fun and plan to practice regularly and carefully.

Handwriting PracticeSomewhere along the line, your child may have missed some basic skills. Start by gaining an understanding of the progression of language arts skills. Keep this in mind as you draw and write with her. Start with the sample lessons of the swan (Book 1), whale (Book 4) and tiger (Book 7). Keep the practice time short, easing into more writing as her skills improve. Find more lessons in the Draw Write Now books. An older child is able to do any of the lessons in the series, so look at the Table of Contents and select a book that she finds most interesting.

Pencil GraspLook at how she holds her pencil. The older the child, the stronger the habits, so don’t expect her grasp to be corrected within a week. Exercises to improve fine motor skills can help, see OT Mom Learning Activities. 

PostureShe may need help with her posture. Exercises to improve gross motor skills will help, see OT Mom Learning Activities.

If your child bristles at the idea of writing practice, drawing may be the thing that motivates her to put a pencil to paper. The skills of handwriting and drawing are similar, so there will be some improvement even if she doesn’t write a word! 

Look at Handwriting: Writing Size

Beautiful handwriting by Melissa, age 7:

CLICK TO ENLARGE. Draw Write Now, Book 8: Horse Lesson, p.32

Melissa obviously has good guidance. To continue developing her skill, I recommend two simple changes:

Change the Guideline Paper
Melissa’s paper has 5/8 inch guidelines. I’d like to see her use the next size down—paper with 1/2 inch guidelines. At the bottom of the paper, she wrote her name and age using consistent letter sizes—she knows how to use guidelines—but, many of the letters in her first four sentences drop below the mid-line or float above the base-line. I think that handwriting practice has become a bit tedious for Melissa. She has developed good control and is able to write smaller. A practice paper with smaller guidelines would match her current skills, and her practice-time would once again be … (dare I say?) … fun!

Change the Letter d
I’d like to see Melissa change the way she makes the letter d. She is starting the letter from the top line. I would advise her to make it like her letter a. Read more on letter formation…

Letter d—Starting at the mid-line, make the letter c shape, swing up to the top line, then down to the base line. (Like the letter a, with a taller straight line.)

Regularly look over handwriting practice sheets. Handwriting practice is about memorization and developing habits—we want letter formation to become rote and words to flow on the paper. Catch the errors before they become habits! Keep practice time fun!

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