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			Handwriting There are so many facets to handwriting. It is not an easy skill to accomplish. Let's look at the components needed to be successful with handwriting. First, and foremost, children need to find the task meaningful. Children need to have knowledge of shapes and letters and that letters make words. They also have to be able to remember how to form individual letters to create words. Then there's the motor requirements including sitting balance, shoulder stability, the ability to hold a pencil and stabilize the paper while writing. If one of these components is compromised, handwriting can be challenging. Handwriting is not a skill that is simply acquired; it must be taught. Put Your Pencils Down...... It's Time to Practice Handwriting Pre-writers: Encourage play and engage children in activities incorportating a variety of positions such as laying on tummy, on hands and knees, kneeling, and crawling. This helps to develop muscle awareness and core stability of upper body/shoulders that helps with control of arm/hand use for handwriting. Idea Box: Throw a blanket over kitchen or classroom table, creating a play space or fort. Place toys inside and engage the children in pretend play to encourage them to crawl in and out. Writers: Encourage writing and drawing activities on a vertical surface. This provides kinesthetic input to trunk and shoulder muscles, enhancing strength and directional awareness for handwriting. Idea Box: Have children play games such as Hangman at a vertical surface such as easel or a white/chalk board.
						My Links Handwriting Help for Kids Should I be concerned about my child/student’s handwriting? 1. Can they identify numbers and letters? 2. Do they understand directional concepts such as top, bottom, under, over? 3. Do they have adequate sitting balance? 4. Can the child use both hands together to manipulate small objects such as stringing beads, assembling Legos, etc? 5. Can they draw basic shapes such as vertical and horizontal lines, circle, square, triangle? 6. Do they understand the symbolic meaning of letters and numbers? 7. Can they hold a pencil? 8. Do they have adequate attention for the task? 9. Is the child motivated to write? 10. Is the child receiving formal handwriting instruction? If your answers are mostly “no”, take a look at which questions the child is not succeeding in and focus your attention on that component. If your answers are “yes”, you may wish to seek assistance from your special education teachers or occupational therapist.
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