There are many reasons a child might struggle with handwriting.  The main reasons are the following:

Weak Hand Strength

Poor Dexterity

Visual Perpetual Difficulties

Motor Planning Difficulties

Poor Core Strength

To address these specific areas, refer to the corresponding sections.  Fixing That Pencil Grip and Let’s Draw will also provide remedial strategies specifically designed for the classroom.  While these  strategies are in play, the child still needs to write each day.  The following are suggestions to help the child struggling with hand writing difficulties during the transition from deficient to proficient writer.

1. 1. Posture while sitting:  It is important that the child be in the best possible position while writing. A 90-90-90 position is the therapeutic jargon used by OT’s and PT’s.  This means the child sits with the feet flat on the floor so the foot/ankle angle is  90 degrees.  The bottom sits on a chair at the correct height so the knees are at a 90 degree angle and the hips and body are also at 90 degrees.  This means that the chair to child ratio must be carefully sized.  If the kindergarten child’s feet dangle and the oversized 3rd grader is scrunched in a chair and hunched over a small desk, the child cannot write comfortably.
   

2. 2. Use of both hands:  The student should stabilize the paper with the non dominant hand at  all times.  If the elbow does this while the hand holds the head, or the other hand is a non participant in the process, bilateral work needs to occur.  In the mean time, stabilizing the paper will help.   Taping the paper or using a non skid pad helps to keep the work from shifting.
   

3. 3.Sometimes a tilt board with the paper securely fastened helps the child with the angulation of the paper.
   

4. 4.Pencil grips* are very helpful in maintaining a functional position on the pencil. 
   

5. 5.Raised lined paper assists the child who has difficulty staying on the line.  It gives tactile (touch) feedback to the child when the pencil literally reaches the line. *
   

6. 6.Using markers to highlight lines or boxing in an area for a child to work also helps to organize the written work.
   

7. 7.With math, using large grid paper, or making boxes so the child has a guide as to where to keep the numbers and letters helps with organization.
   

8. 8.Until the child has adequate control of sizing, spacing and lines, require skipping lines so that each line is clearly defined and letters don’t topple onto each other.
   

9. 9.Programs such as Handwriting Without Tears** provide a sensory motor approach to writing that may help the child gain proficiency. 
   

10. 10.Modifying the written output is important for many children.  For example, for the child with weak hands, endurance is an issue.  Instead of coloring in all of the  pictures beginning with the letter A have the child make an X over it.  This reinforces the drawing of diagonal lines (important for writing) and reduces the amount of work needed to be done). For the older child,  do a pre-test with spelling word and math facts.  If the child already knows how to spell a word then don’t require writing it five times. Keyboarding
    

      is addressed below for the much older child.

11. 11. Word processing becomes an important part of the educational program for many of these children.  As the digital world becomes a reality in the mainstream (even for me!) word processing is not as big an issue.  However teachers understandably wonder how much and when to start  the training.
    

While research is sketchy here are some basic guidelines:

1. Children develop the ability to move the fingers separately over time.  Proficiency in    keyboarding, therefore,  doesn’t really develop until between 4th and 6th grade.

2. 2.A hunt and peck method tends to be used prior to this.  That doesn’t mean keyboarding programs should be discarded. It simply means that expectations should be tempered and just as other skills grow with time, practice and DEVELOPMENT, the same holds true here.  Developmental  readiness is key.
   

3. Keep in mind that the child who struggles with handwriting will typically find keyboarding

challenging as well.  Over time it will be an easier method to write, however, so giving the dysgraphic student more  time to learn and encouraging this method is recommended.

4. 4.Rough Time Frame for Word Processing: 
   

     -1st/2nd grade: completely exploratory and play based

     -3rd/4th introduction of structured programs but keep it low key

     -4th/5th the truly dysgraphic child should begin to transition to word processing as the

      primary method of writing.  This should be a GRADUAL TRANSITION.

     -6th and beyond:  handwriting becomes a limited activity.  Most written work should be

      completed on the computer.

NOTE:  There are some “budget”  devises that do some form of keyboard work for the child but is not actually a computer.   I will not single any out.  Everyone I know who has used one of these with children has found them frustrating and of limited use.  Computers have become very inexpensive.  Many people trade up for better computers every couple of years.  If there are real budgetary constraints, attempt to petition local businesses in the community or if the population served is economically sound, request donations of old computers from parents.  A hand me down computer in each classroom will work much better than one of these cheap machines.

1. *www.theraproducts.com
   

2. ** www.hwtears.com