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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

Pen Again ergonomic pen/pencil for 8 year old with messy writing and poor pencil grip. Opinions please!

97 replies

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 08:45

Hi, my 8 year old son is doing well in all other respects at school (his reading is very good), but his writing is messy, and he has got into a bad habit of holding his pen incorrectly. I gather that this is relatively common in boys, and would take a wait and see approach , except it is beginning to frustrate him.

He finds writing slow and laborious, and says it hurts his hand. At school he is getting a bit frustrated and is becoming avoidant of writing (it is affecting his written maths as well). His progress seems to have stalled. The teacher is also a bit concerned and is going to do a bit of extra writing practice with him.

I am working on the premise that it it is a motor problem at the moment, and we are doing a few minutes of writing practice a day at home.

Now to my question. We have some Pen Again ergonomic pencils, which help to hold the pencil correctly and reduce the need to grip so hard. Wondering if any parents/teachers/OT's out there had used them, and what you think about them?

Any other advice gratefully received.

Many thanks

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Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 17:10

Thanks madwoman

I will try and do a link so people know what i'm talking about

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SlightlyMadSimnelCake · 10/04/2009 17:12

We have a s'move pencil for both my left hander and my right hander - and i have to say that from personal use I don't rate it. DTD2 seems a bit better with it (general left handed untidiness - so different problem) seems to write neater with it - but think that is more phsycological because she is writing with her "special pencil" IYSWIM.

TheCheeseAlarm · 10/04/2009 17:15

I have a 10 year old DS with hypotonia and an appalling pencil grip and dreadful handwriting. He finds these the easiest to use. His handwriting is improving since he started using them.

madwomanintheattic · 10/04/2009 17:20

it's always a bit hit and miss to find something that helps lol.

we're working our way through the special-direct catalogue
thank goodness for dla.

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 17:22

Thanks thecheesealarm They look cool !!!

Here is a link to the Pen Again pencils (child sized).

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Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 17:24

The CheeseAlarm and madwomanintheattic

Can I just ask, given what I've said in the OP, would you recommend me trying to get an assessment/diagnosis, and if so, how should I go about it?

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BonsoirAnna · 10/04/2009 17:28

Faber-Castell Grip 2001 They come in all sorts of formats - colour pencils, lead pencils, felt tips...

madwomanintheattic · 10/04/2009 17:34

i'd have a think and see if anything else strikes you as unusual (any delays/ clumsiness with gross motor or is it just fine motor) any communication delays etc, genral difficulty with processing information/ ordering, and have a read of the dyspraxia type info, but tbh would stick with asking your paed / gp for an OT referral rather than ask for any sort of dx at this point. (sometimes in the us/ canada there is an open referral system to the therapists via a child development center but you would have to ask google lol) - the OT will fairly quickly pick up any other areas of concern if they are worth the title lol, so i don't think there is any need to be overly worried.

handwriting starts to become a little more critical at this stage, and for children who do have quite significant fine motor issues it becomes a 'make or break' as they hit the 'juniors' syllabus and they are required to do that bit more written work. so it suddenly seems that bit more critical and the child can start to suffer from loss of confidence and esteem as well as just finding writing tricky - def the right time to start pushing for some help.

programmes like 'write from the start' (they do a similar one for the older age group as well) can make a significant difference though, it's just a matter of finding an appropriate place to start!

madwomanintheattic · 10/04/2009 17:35

genral? lol. general

TheCheeseAlarm · 10/04/2009 17:38

School referred us to the Occupational Therapist, we just asked the SENCO to, and she did. His writing was beginning to lag so far behind his progress in anything else, it was really slowing him down. They had to send an example of his handwriting and drawing. He was seen within 6 weeks.

It hurts DS1 to write because his hypotonia means he has to hold the pen so much tighter than someone with normal muscle tone and he just can't remember how to hold a pen.He did a whole range of tests - on both his gross and fine motor skills - it was all very relaxed and he enjoyed them. He doesn't have any ongoing treatment but we have a list of exercises to do with him and a list of recommendations to support him in school, including use of a laptop.

Knowing he has hypotonia (and hyperflexibility) has been really useful, especially to stick two fingers up at all the people who called him lazy in the past! For us the most beneficial part was the special cutlery they recommended as I thought he was never going to be able to use a knife and fork, and now he can!!

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 17:38

Thanks madwoman. It definitely has become more of an issue this year, and he has started to say things like "I'm just rubbish". He has even stopped drawing at home, because I just think he doesn't like using a pen anymore

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madwomanintheattic · 10/04/2009 17:41

oh, ok, i had a look. seen similar, didn't know that's what they were called. dd2 uses a quadropod grip due to very low tone and hypermobile joints. (she's a lefty too, but due to brain damage we think lol, so all sorts of issues going on there - i wouldn't like to use her as a typical example lol)

the ot will look not only at pencil grip by the way, but general posture etc - sometimes a sloped writing board can make a huge difference, as can a slight wedge cushion. how is he generally with sitting still and concentrating? sometimes thinking a bit wider than the actual pencil grip can help too...

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 17:41

TheCheeseAlarm This is all sounding a bit familiar.

Thanks so much. I feel I really need to seize the day and get him some more help.

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TheCheeseAlarm · 10/04/2009 17:41

I forgot - school referred him originally because they thought he had dyspraxia - but he doesn't.

madwomanintheattic · 10/04/2009 17:45

aw, that's really sad but very common at this point when it becomes apparent how much it affects them.

cheese - which cutlery are you using now? we're still using 'junior caring' (or 'pointy finger' in our house lol), but need some ideas of which to move onto as they are a bit wee for her now... not due to see ot for a while and keep forgetting to ask...

we have 'likely to require use of keyboard long term' in statement already lol - i heart my ot.

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 17:46

He is really good at sitting still and concentrating (he will play Lego on his own for hours ....)

I have wondered a bit about his gross motor skills. Nothing dramatic, but his running style is a bit ungainly, and he is slow compared to his friends. On sports day, he's often the last in the egg and spoon etc - trying hard not to cheat LOL

He was late-ish to jump and climb.

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madwomanintheattic · 10/04/2009 17:54

the obvious links are dyspraxia, or hypotonia and hypermobility, but tbh the ot's are usually really good, and the actual therapy/ exercises and hints and tips are similar anyway.
i know a little boy (also 8) who was referred query dyspraxia but has picked up an ADD dx, but 'proper' attention deficit (lol), rather than hyperactivity/ oppositional defiant. so there are a few things that can be flagged - or it could be just a small delay that needs a bit of extra help.

ot. definitely

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 17:58

So glad I posted on here today

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Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 18:28

I have just had a very quick google of hypermobility and hypotonia. Some of it doesn't fit, but what does stand out is that DS does have "double-jointed" elbows (as did DH, until he broke one of them after a fall).

TheCheeseAlarm does your DS feel better about himself now?

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LIZS · 10/04/2009 18:33

Not come across them . We have Stabilo S Move pen and pencil (pita cos it needs a special sharpener which ds promptly lost and it blunts rapidly) and SENCO has showed me Pelikan pens and Yoro pens

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 18:57

Cheese and Madwoman:

I may be putting 2 and 2 together and making 6, but DS also suffers a lot from pains in his legs after walking, and "growing pains" at night.

Thanks LIZS

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mrz · 10/04/2009 19:05

I've introduced Yoropens (and pencils) into my school for children with fine motor problems. We are seeing really good results in a short time.
I would also recommend exercise to help.

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 20:15

mrz That's twice Yoro pens have been mentioned, sounds good. Thanks

Are you a primary teacher?

What kind of exercises?

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chegirl · 10/04/2009 21:13

I am going to be really crap as I cant remember the name of DS2's pen but it is easily available and I can describe

Its banana shaped and comes in blue and pink. You can get it for left or right handers. It comes with 2 refills a cost about £3.99.

Found it

Stabilo 's move.

We have had brilliant success with it. DS2 has quite a significant delay and his writing has improve hugely. His teacher was so amazed at his homework she asked if we could get him one for school. They had previously used foam triangles but he didnt get on with them.

Sorry if this has been mentioned before but I am just off to bed and this thread caught my eye.

Original poster

screamingabdab · 10/04/2009 21:52

Thanks chegirl. Nice to hear from you! Hope you are settling in to your job

I have lots of pens to try out

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