What age child drew/wrote this?

[ArmadilloRed]

I know these threads can be super annoying but I’m curious to know what age child you think produced the following drawing and writing. As a hint, this isn’t a stealth boast - I’m concerned they are behind…

Why are you shocked? Have you not noticed the writing some adults produce (some of whom are incredibly bright and in professional jobs)? Are you also shocked that some people with disabilities may not be able to walk or speak clearly? There can be all kinds of reasons for a 12/13yo to write like this which cannot be fully fixed, even if made to do two handwriting worksheets every day for the entirety of their school years.

OP, have you asked him if he is in pain when he writes? It blew my mind when the OT asked DC1 this at the first appointment. So simple and obvious once they'd asked, but it had never occurred to me to ask DC or her to mention it to me as it hurts both of us to write and we'd both assumed it was normal and the same for everyone (writing became less painful for me through the school years as my hand strength grew, although it never fully went away, so I assumed that was the expected process). Now with a writing slant, hand exercises, not insisting on a traditional tripod grip and easy-grip pens & pencils, her writing and drawing is much improved but still a long way behind her peers. She was so behind as a double whammy of the pain preventing her from forming the text neatly, but also because she would often write the bare minimum to avoid the pain, meaning she's had less practice overall too. She's had a lot of ground to make up, but at least she's legible now! It turns out she is extremely hypermobile in her hands (along with most of her body), which is what causes the pain. Like your DC, the content of her work is in line with her age, but the presentation (including spelling) is far behind expected levels.

About a 4 year old going by the handwriting but the vocabulary is an older child.

Are they left- handed or cognitively impaired in some way?

@ArmadilloRed just want to reassure you about handwriting skills vs cognitive capabilities: my brillant GP writes like your son. Doctors are known for their disastrous handwriting besides their obviously high iq.

Aw this is very cute ❤️

It looks like my dyslexic 9 year olds writing.

Actually, it really reminds me of my husband’s handwriting! (my husband got something silly like 11 A*’s in GCSEs and now works in finance so maybe writing like this is not such an issue 😂)

My DS was allowed to use a laptop in class for any written work. This was also helpful when it came to GCSEs as the fact that it was his usual method of working meant that he was able to also use a laptop for his exams.

Maths was the only difficult area for this. DS was very good at maths but it was harder to show the working out etc on his laptop. This was almost 10 years ago though, so newer and more advanced technology will hopefully have improved the situation for others. DD now goes to the same school and students are given school ipads to borrow.

Writing slopes are also useful. Early on, DS used one of those big lever arch folders to lean on to support his hand when writing.

I understand children are all different. Just commented what I did to show that 4 yos can write, if you teach them.

I don’t write notes to people often, but I do write in a journal on occasion, and I’m careful to make it neat so that it’s not a PITA to read later… I would think most adults would still need to fill out forms and such regularly, no? You need to write on those. Idk. I just struggle to imagine regressing so much. (No shade to anybody’s children, of course.)

I'd say seven or 8.

Primary teacher here - the phrasing makes me think they are older (8-9).

Obviously, if they are that age, there are some aspects they could do with developing further. Aside from handwriting and formation, I'd focus on sentence basics (capital letters, full stops). 'Birthday' is spelt wrong but they haven't made many other errors and have spelt common exception words correctly - having phonetical knowledge is hugely important and is a great starting point!

No, I haven’t come across any adults with handwriting like this. I didn’t think it would be common enough for multiple other posters to say that their older children write like that. I didn’t say anything about anyone’s intelligence. I hadn’t considered the possibility of a disability.

@happyLittleAG I didn't mean to sound harsh...Beautiful handwriting is a lovely thing, it's great that you are passing that on to your little one. I'm trying to remember the last time I filled out a handwritten form. I did one for the dentist but that was mainly ticking boxes!

I'm a teacher and have seen it all re penmanship. Some children find it incredibly difficult to master handwriting. It could be dypraxia. On another note, two of the most intelligent and high achieving people I know (both consultant radiologists) have chicken scrawl for writing. Come to think of it, most doctors do. It's no indication of your child's academic ability so I wouldn't worry too much unless there are other issues with, and gaps in, their general education. I have no doubt exams will all be typed by the time your child is doing their final exams so they're lucky to be growing up in an era that doesn't prioritise fine motor skills.

DS writes not dissimilar to this and he’s 14 😫. DD wrote like this when she was about 5-6.

Oh and to all the people being rude and disbelieving about this child’s handwriting… my DC wrote similarly at this age and is now a Cambridge graduate.

DS writing is bad too! He's an adult now and dyspraxic. I struggled to read my birthday card a few weeks ago - but he used a laptop for his exams and is now very happily working as a software engineer.

Who gives a fuck about hand writing with a note that sweet!