Can anyone recommend aid for handwriting with hypermobility?

[Mymaloy]

My ds is struggling with all the writing for exams and think we need to research some helpful aids if they exist

My DS is hypermobile and uses a laptop for everything, provided by school, might that be a option?

Laptop?

unfortunately his typing skills are probably slower than his writing. I will need to get him to write on the keyboard and time it to check. But have a feeling that will be slower.
his hypermobility I think is fairly mild. He managed ok at gcse but the level of essay writing required for a level is proving a lot more difficult

Yes laptop.

Or if he has to handwrite, look up Y-shaped pens, ring-pens, or the "monk's grip"/D'Nelian grip for holding the pen. I found it really helped

https://www.thedyslexiashop.co.uk/collections/pens-pencils-and-writing-aids?srsltid=AfmBOopk9-IRR4C2DDTGM2gQdCkZ1gdd2vVzHJ11wLbsOZm7INgp8Y2J

Whilst all together, they look more like they would be in an infant school, most of these look perfectly fine in a clear pencil case.

DD is hyper mobile and also had a school issued laptop for classes and exams.

Do those with laptops get more time? Or same amount of time?

ExH used y shaped pens which really helped him with his handwriting.

Thanks. That’s me ordered some y shaped pens

I returned to uni in my late 20s and by then my joints were much worse, I hadn't even realised how badly as I hadn't physically written loads for donkeys years. My first year exam, I had to just give up and walk out, I physically couldn't do it.

The next day I coincidentally was speaking to the dcs schools learning support officer whilst I was on library duty, she gave me some tips and at the end of the day she sent my Dc home with different pen grips (remember those triangle ones from early years settings?) , chunky pens, y pens, a cushion support etc for me to try with a note to say to practice to see how much i could comfortably write and if I couldn't then to request laptop access for exams.

I still use the pens etc if I'm writing a fairly short note, otherwise everything is typed.

The abiligrip is great for my DD (year 11) with EDS. She uses them for art too.
Any long passages of writing are typed on a laptop.

My DD didn't qualify for extra time. I encouraged her to do an online touch typing course and her typing speed increased and was much faster than her handwriting speed, so she kind of did get 'extra time' as she was able to get her answers down much faster!

Thanks. Is the touch typing a paid for course?

I know someone who was able to dictate their a level exams. She was bloody awful writing them but verbalising her answers got her a* across the board.

Wow. That’s amazing. Shows how important it is to have the right support in place

DS used a laptop for essay subjects up to GCSE, but from Y12 onwards he only did subjects with a lot of equations, where typing on a laptop is less practical.

After trying several ergonomic pens, he found the Stabilo Easy worked best for him. He was still using this in his final exams for his degree.

It depends. Some get one or other but if processing speed is affected then potentially both, Rest breaks might be relevant to hypermobility.

Dictation software might be the answer. Not the built in generic stuff which is fine for the odd document but proper voice adapting software like Dragon. Its not cheap (although it may be funded as an adjustment) but its a massive help for a wide range of disabilities.