Many students learn to handwrite without requiring any extra support or intervention. However, for a variety of reasons some students find it difficult. They just don’t seem to understand how to form the letter, where to begin and finish, where to position it on the lines, whether it is uppercase or lowercase or even when to use uppercase and lowercase letters. They may reverse letters and numbers, and not know when to use full stops or commas.

 

It is important that students are able to automatically and legibly write all letters and numbers. If they are devoting part of their working memory each time to working out how to form an individual letter, then they have less working memory to be able to focus on the actual task of the writing itself i.e. the story or the vocabulary. That is why they may appear to be producing less content and at a less sophisticated standard than would be expected.

 

For simplicity, reasons for concern regarding handwriting difficulties can be divided into the following categories;

1. Difficulties with fine motor skills

2. Difficulties with handwriting readiness skills

3. Difficulties with letter production

4. Difficulties with generating appropriate written output.

 

Early handwriting intervention can help a child to understand that:

•  Letters are more than just marks on a page.  Letters make sounds and these letters can be joined together to make words that we can read, either silently or aloud. 

• These words can make sentences and paragraphs and essays.  They can make shopping lists and write Happy Birthday on cards.

• Handwriting can show others what we know and help us to read what others have written.

• Handwriting is linked with reading and spelling and when a handwriting program incorporates these elements then you often see improvements across the other domains.

 

Children's handwriting difficulties typically appear at common points across schooling;
 

1. In the first two years of formal schooling, i.e., Foundation or Preparatory Year, and Year One.  where it is hopefully picked up early by an observant teacher or concerned parent.
    

2. In Year Three.  This is when the old saying, “First you learn to read, and then you read to learn” becomes true. Academic demands increase, including the need for longer and deeper written output. This may also be the time when students are awarded a ‘Pen Licence” and it becomes apparent who is, or is not, a good writer.  It may also be the time when students are beginning to transition from print to cursive (or joined) writing.
    

3. In Year Six or Year Seven when students are starting to prepare for the transition to secondary school.  Difficulties may be highlighted in the final year of primary school, especially if applying for a selective or private school, or the following year due to concerns raised by teachers at the high school.
    

4.  The end of Year Nine, and during Years 10 and 11 are often recognised because of the impending challenge of high stakes external examinations which influence early career opportunities.
    

5.  In Years 11 and 12 requests are often made to the examining authority for special handwriting accommodations for assessments and examinations. These applications cannot be guaranteed to be successful.

 

Unless interventions are provided it is reasonable to expect that the handwriting difficulty will persist, and persist beyond formal schooling

 

Early intervention provides the best long-term outcome. There are many intervention points indicated above. Please don’t wait until Level 5.

 

Sometimes children ’grow out’ of their problems and there is no need for intervention. However, if you are genuinely concerned then rather than ‘wait and see’ you may end up with a ‘wait and fail’ scenario where the problem has not gone away and is now worse, often including feelings of anxiety and loss of confidence. While you are ‘waiting’, classmates are progressing and the gap between your child and his or her peers is widening. 

 

Foundations for Handwriting’ provides a complete therapy solution for an evidence-based handwriting program embedded within a literacy model based on the Australian curriculum

 

Please feel free to ring me for a free, no-obligation discussion to establish whether your child would benefit from targeted assistance.