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Behaviour/development

Talk to others about child development and behaviour stages here. You can find more information on our development calendar.

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Original poster

Handwriting advice please

25 replies

kid · 01/02/2006 13:24

My 7 year old DD has really bad hand writing. Sometimes its hard to even read what she has wrote its that bad. She is left handed (I'm RH) so I find it hard to advise her on holding the pencil. I've tried a pencil grip which hasn't made any difference, tried getting her to hold the pencil a bit higher and also to turn the paper if she finds this helps. But none of these things have worked. The only thing that has helped a tiny bit, is repeatedly telling her to take her time and concentrate on her writing.

I don't feel this is the answer though as it can't be doing her self esteem much good, plus I can't keep breathing down her neck.

We got her one of the pens and boards so she could practice writing but of course her hand just rubs it off as she writes along the line!

My DS is also LH but his writing looks ok, he is only 3 though and has only recently learnt how to write his name.

Any advice greatly appreciated

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poppy101 · 01/02/2006 13:27

Have a look on the lefthanded website, there is a shop in bond street in london that do lots of supplies.

What has the teacher advised ???

Original poster

kid · 01/02/2006 13:28

She has advised practising handwritng a couple of times a week at home.
I actually work in DD's class so I witness every bit of work she does.

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Original poster

kid · 01/02/2006 13:28

She has advised practising handwritng a couple of times a week at home.
I actually work in DD's class so I witness every bit of work she does.

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Original poster

kid · 01/02/2006 13:29

(opps) pressed post twice!

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poppy101 · 01/02/2006 13:30

Ask to borrow one of the handwriting books that they use, might be Nelson. Just takes time, it will improve, mine did when I got the right writing implements.

LemonTart · 01/02/2006 13:39

Definitely encourage her to turn her paper 90 degrees round as it is much easier. I took longer to write neatly in my class (LH) and have a bit of a complex about it now. When everyone in the class could write their name really neatly in "joined up" they were given a pen by the teacher. I was the last in the class. My teacher even tried to persuade my parents to encourage me to use my RH instead..Grrr
Don?t let her feel pressured or different because of her LH. Easy to say I know.
Also, don?t try to make her think that she needs special equip becuase she is different - sure - scissors and things can help, but not necessary for writing.
Try to establish the reasons for her writing - is it that she rushes to get her thoughts down on paper or does she genuinely find it awkward holding a pencil? School can make you feel pressured to write quickly - constantly being told to hurry along and finish the task. If she feel slike this, have a word with the teacher.
If it is purely awkward, try a thicker pencil rather than a grip. Chunkier ones are easier to control. To help my class when I taught we used to get plastic coloured tape (electricians tape I think!) and make a stripe on the pencils to help them learn where to hold as too close can strain the wrist and too far is harder to control etc
Keep up the encouragement, tell her how beautiful her writing is when she tries, stick it up on the fridge, small rewards etc and hope that all the positive reminders and gentle encouragment to hold the pencil well, turn the paper till comfy and tak eher time will all rub off.

LIZS · 01/02/2006 13:51

There are some products specifically for helping lh kids with writing here . Can the school offer any 1-to-1 support ? ds is similar age (8 in march ) and has motor skill issues but he and another boy in the class have had writing support twice a week since Autumn 1/2 term and it has improved beyond recognition. They do warm up exericses with the shouldlers and fingers (ie holding marbles between the fingers are releasing one by one) and then practice a group of similarly structured letters and then words. His writing is now smaller, neater, more evenly sized and he is just starting to join it up ! Teacher also takes every and any opportunity to praise the effort and improvement he makes.

Tommy · 01/02/2006 13:56

try giving her squared paper - it should help with the width of letters as well as the height. Also, would recommend the site Lizs posted

Original poster

kid · 01/02/2006 19:49

Thanks for the advice. She isn't the only LH child in her class and is one of two that struggle with handwriting. There is no additional support for her. A friend of mine (also LH) has offered to help DD to try and improve her writing. We are going to be using a book just for her to practice in, so hopefully we will be able to see an improvement.

At school today, she did a really lovely piece of work. She had to make up a little poem and write it in her book. It was a really nice poem and her writing was good and I could see she had taken care when writing it, she was really proud and so was I.

I will borrow one of the handwriting books from school and see how that goes. I might as well buy some books myself too as I'm sure I will be here again with DS in a couple of years!

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Miaou · 01/02/2006 20:01

Kid, do you think the problem is purely down to the fact that she is left-handed? And is she doing joined up writing yet?

I ask because dd1's (and dd2's for that matter but less so) handwriting was appalling until she learnt how to do joined up. It seemed to "anchor" her pencil more and it wandered over the page a little less - I kid you not!

Do you know any adult left-handers who could give her some pointers? (I guess you may have some in your family?)

Incidentally, my aunt and two of my close friends are left-handed and all have beautiful handwriting.

Original poster

kid · 01/02/2006 21:27

My friend is LH and is going to spend about 20 minutes a week doing some work with her. We haven't decided what work she should do with her, we'll worry about that next!

No one else in my family is LH, just both of my kids!

I thought it would be better to get her writing her letters clearly before trying joined up writing. Her school get the kids to write their letters with a little tail or tick at the end of them, so the letters will be almost joined up.

When DD writes, her letters are all over the place, very rarely are they the same size and she hardly ever writes on the line. I keep remembering the writing she did today, if she could do that a majority of the time, I'd be delighted. At home, all she wants to do is mark a register for her imaginary class.

I think I should lighten up on her and get her to copy some patterns (zigzag, loop the loop) rather than nag her on letters, I feel so mean sometimes.

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Original poster

kid · 01/02/2006 21:30

In answer to your question about is it down to her being LH, no, I don't think its just that. She is a bit of a dreamer and a nosey parker too. She loves to see what everyone else is doing so while she is doing this, she isn't getting on with her work. As the time is running out, she suddenly starts rushing to get the work done. A lot of her work has the comment 'you need to work more neatly' on it.

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Miaou · 01/02/2006 22:26

kid, the way you describe your dd's handwriting, it sounds a lot like my dd1's. If I showed you a "before" and "after" learning joined up writing, you wouldn't believe it was the same child, yet within a week it was profoundly different. I agree about waiting until she can form her letters correctly, but you may find that it all becomes so much better once she is joining (and it sounds like the building blocks are in place ). Good luck!

singersgirl · 01/02/2006 22:56

DS1 is not left handed but has poor writing and fine motor skills. His writing has also got a lot better this year since he's started joining - all the letters are the same size at least!

katymac · 01/02/2006 23:05

My DD was just starting to make readable print .....and they introduced join up - it's unreadable now (she's RHed)

After WW's 3,4,5 all the way through to 47 - I have now passed the task over to my Dad and the 2 of them are enjoying the time together

Original poster

kid · 07/02/2006 19:05

I bought a hand writing book for DD. There is a diagnostic page which will tell us which strokes she has trouble with. Well so far, she has trouble with every stroke she has tried

I figure if I get her to practise these strokes frequently, her writing will naturally improve. I feel a little bit better just for the fact I am doing something about it, more than her school are doing

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DominiConnor · 08/02/2006 02:45

I had really horrible problems with handwriting at school. Am naturally clumsy, and the Christians at my junior school I later realised had a superstitious issue with left handedness. They didn't like it at all. So deep are the scars that 2.0 doesn't get any help from me on writing, even though he has inherited the issue. I stil tense up at writing any amount of text, and don't want to transmit that.

Can't offer much on the writing front, even as advice.
But I would take care to ensure that the effect on her schoolwork is limited to a small area. If she's spending too much mental effort on writing, the more important stuff will not get learned.

I was saved by keyboards, and I recommend that you let her type stuff up. 2.0's favourite toy at the moment is google talk, which is a free instance messenger. He types in text, and I reply. He gets to practise spelling and sentence construction with me, but without the barriers of constructing letters.

mandieb · 08/02/2006 18:28

I have found the answer I hope .I went into WH Smiths and got a left handed pencil I kid you not .My son is 6 and a half and a left hander .He started in reception learning joined up and his writing was bad to say the least . His teacher gave me some sheets to do .I think all schools have them I am sure ,they have wiggly lines like dot to dot and various wavy lines,theses really really helped. Now in year 2 he is really finding his own style of writing and it looks ok (ish ) but he just needs to neaten it up a bit. This left handed pen is made by YOROPEN at www.yoropen.co.uk. It was£2.90 . We tried it at home and you could see the difference just using it the once so heres hoping it works I have just got to ask his lovely teacher if he can use it in class.

mandieb · 08/02/2006 18:29

Sorry not pen it is a pencil .

Original poster

kid · 08/02/2006 18:56

DD has been given a white board and some pens, plus a few different pencils with softer lead, a handwriting book with some shapes and letters to copy, and a few felt tip pens to practise with. I feel really relieved that we are actually doing something to help her improve her writing without making her feel bad or upset.

DH suggested tonight that she tried to write her name with her right hand. I showed her my attempt at using my left hand (it was very wobbly!). DD surprised me as her writing with her right hand isn't that bad. Considering she has never ever used it to write, I was impressed by the control she had of the pencil. I am now wondering if we should encourage her to try using both hands or just let her stick to her left hand? She didn't mind trying her right hand so I don't feel we would be forcing her to do something she didn't want to. But at the same time, I just want to see an improvement with whichever hand she uses! Would training her to use both hands delay or confuse her even more?

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Troutpout · 08/02/2006 19:03

Ds is 8 and left handed.dh and i are right His writing was appalling untill last year. The big difference seemed to be making him do joined up all the time....
I'm not sure if your daughter does joined up or not.

Original poster

kid · 08/02/2006 19:06

She doesn't at the moment, but I spoke to the HT and she thinks her writing wasn't too bad for a 7yo. She is forming the letters with a tail so they are ready to be joined up, I think we might practise some joined up writing at home to see how it goes.

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Troutpout · 08/02/2006 19:29

I really think this will make a difference Kid. Ds's teacher last year (yr3) also happened to be the special needs coordinator in the school...and it was her suggestion....and it really worked. It also helped him to stop doing letter reversals.

HouseOfGruffalo · 08/02/2006 20:27

Best bet for improving handwriting is 'little and often' - 5 mins a day more likely to help than 20 mins per week, IME. Whatever happens, if extra work outside school is introduced, keep it fun, otherwise the child can become completely turned off the whole issue. Have you checked that eyesight isn't an issue? - Just a thought. There are also some really good programmes to address handwriting issues that work on hand-eye coordination rather than 'just' practising letter shapes.
Sorry; waffled. HTH!!!!

Original poster

kid · 08/02/2006 22:05

I hadn't thought about eye sight, I think I will get her tested. She was tested last year and as 2 members of the family have a squint, they suggested she had a more thorough test which I haven't had done yet.

We intend to make it fun for her rather than breathe down her neck forcing to write letters. She likes making patterns and drawing so this will also be used to improve co-ordination.

Thanks for the advice and tips to everyone that has replied.

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