One may ask in the age of word processing, “What’s the big deal about how children hold their pencils?  After all,  they will be discarded for a lap top soon enough.”  While this is true,  the process of learning to control a pencil solidifies fine motor control and makes the mechanics of writing automatic, so the brain can shift attention 100% to generating text; ideas, correct spelling and grammatical structure.  When some percentage is diverted to the mechanics of writing, the nascent writer often has difficulty getting thoughts onto the paper.

I have observed children with terrible pencil grasps, but gifted in drawing and reading.  I counseled teachers not to worry because the children were so proficient in their stereotypical ways that we shouldn’t try to fix what wasn’t broken.  Sadly, in many of these cases, come first grade the child struggled with written work in spite of superior ability in every other way.  Simply put, that cramped, uncomfortable pencil grip held them back in the acquisition of writing prose and everything else requiring the use of the pencil.

When children begin to develop the correct grasping pattern in preschool, it is much easier for them to learn to form letters correctly in Kindergarten and first grade.  They do not fatigue and in later grades (2-5th) they can keep up with the pace of the writing demands and focus their attention on the task of learning sentence structure, etc.  Since the fingers have learned to move independently when using a DYNAMIC TRIPOD GRASP, learning keyboarding skills is much easier.

MOST CHILDREN WHO STRUGGLE WITH HAND WRITING HAVE SIMIAR DIFFICULTIES LEARNING TO KEYBOARD PROFICIENTLY.  So, by addressing hand strength and control in the younger years, you are also establishing the foundation for proficient word processing skills to be used for life.

Here are recommended activities specifically targeting the classroom.   For expanded lists of activities to support hand development refer to Hand Strength, Tactile Exploration, and Dexterity.

Preschool:

The main job of the preschool teacher is to help the child learn the following:

1. Move each finger separately; especially the index (pointer) and thumb.

     Hand play activities  (Where is Thumbkin, 10 Little Indians, etc.)

     Poking with the index (poking holes in balls of playdough/clay, dotting paper

     with ink/paint).  Poking with Thumb - same activities

     Pointing finger/thumb to draw lines in finger paints and shaving cream

2. Use thumb and index finger to pick up small objects ALWAYS.

     Common substitutions:  thumb and middle/ring fingers, thumb to side of palm

     To encourage this PINCER GRASP:  “Make a fist, point thumb and pointer”

      When playing with any small objects (beads, game pieces, etc. remind with above

      cue and demonstrate)

             

 

3. Strengthen the thumb in an ABDUCTED position (away from the palm)

      Plant sprayers,  large rubber stamps,  two handed hold of eraser.

                           

4. 4.Strengthen the wrists: 
   

    

       Fingers pointing towards the sky position for activities

               

     Wringing out sponges and  face cloths

     Untwisting  jar caps (e.g. peanut butter jars)

5.  Use of Early Writing Tools:

     2-3 year olds:  Their muscles will not be strong enough to hold pencils correctly

      so using large writing tools such as sidewalk chalk and large markers that pull the thumb

      away from the hand. 

      Stamps are better to make designs

      Dot Art:  a gross grasp is better than a thumbs down position

     3-4 year olds:    Use of large sized implements- large markers

                                                                                 -large chalk*

                                                                                 -large crayons*

*Keep in mind that these are more RESISTIVE, meaning it takes more muscle power to push and pull across the paper.  If hands are very young/weak choose markers.  These glide and are easier to use.

     4-5 year olds:   Introduction of large sized pencils can begin. If the child is unable to

      maintain a TRIPOD hold of the pencil then go back to younger tools and choose hand

      strengthening activities rather than writing tasks.

      If the child’s hands have become strong then try out regular sized pencils.  If incorrect

      pencil holding occurs go back to younger alternatives.

      Try out a pencil  grip* to see if that helps support the fingers in the correct position. 

       If it doesn’t go back to younger alternatives. 

*Use “The Grip.”  Many alternates (e.g. triangle grips) merely reinforce incorrect grasping patterns!

                                           

6. 6.Encourage downward strokes and beginning circles at the top
   

                        

Kindergarten and First Grade:

1.  The first job of the Kindergarten teacher is to assess how strong the child’s hands/fingers are and  if they are ready for using a pencil and learning how to write.  Here’s a simple test:

Ask the child to: 

1.  Make a fist

2.  Hide thumb then pop it up without the rest of the fingers unclasping

3. Wiggle the thumb back and forth

4. 4.Pinch thumb to index tip and bend back and forth (try holding a bead and see if the child can move the fingers without dropping the bead)
   

5. Hold a pencil and maintain the correct position once demonstrated.

                               

         Correct position:  Thumb on side, index on top, middle on the opposite side

If the child is unable to do these things, spend a few weeks on many of the activities listed above to ready the child for writing.  In the meantime, substitute stamps, cutting and other hand strengthening activities to learn letters.

2.  Continue to do hand strengthening activities on a daily basis to increase hand strength further.  Here are some good and simple classroom activities to implement:

Plant spraying (plants and to use to wash the tables and chalk boards)

 

Erasing

Push pin activities

Scissor cutting

Food prep activities (peeling and zesting)

 

Miscellaneous toys

             

                                    Playing with these can be used as rewards!

3.  Continue to develop hand manipulations:

Hand puppets,  finger play, hand play games of increasing complexity

Simple sign language

Shadow puppets

Playing cards

Mancala (holding stones and  dropping one at a time)

Simple Weaving activities

4. Simple drawing and stroke work in large space (chalk/white boards, large  paper)

     Stokes should be:  TOP TO DOWN

                                    LEFT TO RIGHT

                                    CIRCLES UPPER RIGHT TO THE LEFT THEN DOWN AND AROUND

 

                              

                    Use dots to direct drawing shapes and early letters rather than tracing

  5.   Holding the crayon and chalk on the side requires the finger tips to hold on.  This strengthens the little muscles in the finger tips.  These little muscles allow for dynamic movement  in the fingers.

                                                

6. Continue with index finger tip drawings (e.g shaving cream), especially for learning letters.

7.  When teaching to color inside the lines, tell the students to outline inside the original line to create a “barrier.”  This requires the hand to move in different directions while holding the

         pencil  Do not have them move the paper.

  8.  Make sure all students always hold the paper with the non dominant hand.

First, Second Grades and Beyond:

1. 1.Once correct letter formation is established, the main emphasis is developing endurance
   

    accuracy and increased speed and control.  Sizing and spacing come in to play.  If the

     child has obtained a dynamic pencil grasp, this will all come with time and practice.  If the

     student still clutches the pencil in a rigid or very frail way, go back to many of the activities

     above and adapt to the older students curriculum.

     For example, a push pin activity can be used to make a map of the constellations

     Cutting  projects for collages (especially cutting out letters).

2. Drawing activities to increase endurance and accuracy:

     Designs:  Made by the student

                     Purchased  Designs

        

      How to Draw Books  Ed Emberly is the BEST!

  

      Games that require writing/scorekeeping

3. 3.Strengthening activities for the  MUCH older child: