Hi, my son is in year 4.
from early on school noticed a couple of things - very wriggly, sensory seeking etc, spoke to me and put things in place such as sitting him on a wobble cushion.
as he’s gone through year 1,2,3 his writing difficulties have become more and more apparent. During lockdown it was especially hard as he struggled with everything sent home being worksheet based. I spoke to school then as he was getting very upset, but little they could do at that time.
once back in school, yr 3, I’ve had regular contact with his teachers, who have put extra support in place such as sometimes using a laptop and giving him typing practice. In year 3 the school suggested they refer him for further assessment.
they filled in initial forms, gave me some forms to fill in, and then they sent the referral.
it wasn’t until recently in year 4 that the appointment has come through. He has gone, with me, to a specialist centre and been assessed by OTs for fine motor skills in one session and gross motor skills in another. They’ve looked at him writing, watched him cut up food, tie shoelaces, get dressed, jump and skip, throw and catch and lots more.
as a result he has been given daily physio exercises to do to strengthen certain muscles and improve balance, and been given writing exercises. They have recommended certain pens etc to use in school and put him on a short handwriting focus course with a physio.
they said when he’s 9 he can do the dyspraxia assessment and also a handwriting assessment, which would give him a formal diagnosis.
for us, I don’t care that he doesn’t run fast or doesn’t like to go on zip wires or takes longer to get dressed, who cares? None of that matters one bit.
the focus for us is the writing, as his brain is fast but his hand is not capable so it is a physical block to progressing in education. The rest of it is just his quirks, nobodies perfect at everything