With the increase in electronic media use, you might be wondering how important your child’s penmanship is anyway. You might reason that your child will live in a world where their keyboarding skills are more important.
Overview
Learning to write legibly is one way to improve fine motor skills. Improved handwriting may help your child avoid misunderstandings—such as a teacher who can’t read an assignment that your child has written and turned in. While it is true that your child does not need to win any perfect penmanship contests to be successful in life, they still ought to have handwriting that is legible. As your child grows older, less time is spent in school developing good handwriting. Some schools even dropped teaching cursive beyond a signature, though other schools have brought it back in recent years. In addition, many schools are spending less time on handwriting instruction in the early grades, and higher grades do not always cover handwriting at all. As a result, many middle schoolers will slip away from any good habits they were developing. Fortunately, there are some suggestions and strategies you can teach your child or teen to help them improve their handwriting skills. You may even find these tips valuable for your own handwriting review. Older children and teens may think that there is nothing they can do to improve their handwriting. Some people reason that because signatures and handwriting are unique to each person, they should be developed by the time elementary school is completed. With a little practice and observation, anyone can develop neat handwriting. Rather than nag or argue with your child about their penmanship, let them know that they can make their unique handwriting better. Remind them that it is important for someone to be able to read what they’re writing. If you feel you could improve your own handwriting, you can also follow the tips listed below. Setting a good example will model to your child that it is possible to improve their handwriting—and how to do it. A quick way to teach proper grasp is to have your child pick up the pen or pencil near the writing end with a thumb and index finger pinch, then flip the pen or pencil over so it is resting on the edge of the hand. If your child struggles with grip, try different pencil or pen grips that are sold in school supply departments, educational stores, and online. Some are round cushions that make the pencil or pen thicker and easier to grasp. Some are triangular shaped tubes that make it easier to maintain a tripod grasp. Experiment with different pen and pencil shapes, and different grips to see if they help improve your child’s handwriting. Point these areas out to your child so they will notice how their letters are sized. Also be sure to point out letters that are well proportioned to boost their confidence and prevent them from feeling defensive. Show your child the open loops in their writing. Hopefully, awareness alone will encourage them to start closing these circles. Offer positive feedback when you notice closed loops. Point out to your child any Is that are dotted more than half of a nearby letters distance away. Ts should be crossed across the top from the left side to the right side. Capital Ts should be crossed at the very top. Lower case t’s should be crossed about 1/4 of the distance from the top of the letter. Try to find ways to make the practice fun.
Copy favorite quotes, jokes, or sayings. Introduce older kids to calligraphyMake pretend historical documents, look to illuminated manuscripts and older copied scrolls for inspiration.Use fun colored, scented, or textured pens and markers
Additional Tips
If you are concerned that your child is having an unusually difficult time with handwriting, check to see if dysgraphia may be a cause. If your child is past the grade levels where handwriting instruction is given, you can gently point out any slips in their handwriting when you review their homework. Be sure that their homework corner is arranged to allow for comfortable writing. Your child should be able to sit in their chair with both feet on the floor. Their work surface area should be large enough to allow them to comfortably position their paper and move their dominant side arm while writing. If your child is still learning handwriting in their school grade or they are working with an occupational therapist, use the above tips combined with the occupational therapist’s recommendations for your child.
