year two writing. Fine motor control or other problems or just messy?

[Dirtydishesmakemesad]

My dd is in year two she is one of the oldest and is already 7. Her writing is shockingly messy. It is all over the page, backwards letter some huge letters some tiny ones. She is actually pretty good at reading and whats she actually writes is good, she does well in the actual content but the state of it make it really hard to read. Her teacher did mention it last year but obviously this year i havent met her teacher yet.
We had the class bear home yesterday and I admit I was actually a bit ashamed at the state of what went in there - I just glanced at some of the other entries and the other children has for example written on the actual lines rather than just vaguely at the page.

I have tried helping her, as I am sure her teacher did last year I have also tried just getting her to slow down but she just seems incapable of writing neatly.

My dh had a similar problem at school and was told he had problems with fine motor control, he had special pens etc and sat his exams on a computer. He still has messy writing, he also has dyslexia and without being mean he is very clumsy. His career is on computers so it doesnt show up in his life much these day but I am wondering if dd could be suffering a similar problem?

I sort of want to talk to the teacher but I dont want to come across as being
really critical of dd especially in front of dd as she is really sensitive about this sort of thing which is one of the reasons I tend not to push it too much at home.

does anyone have any advice about this?

Could be fine motor skills problems, or visual perception problems.

Do talk to the teacher - but not in front of DD.

Write From the Start would be a good place to start......

It might be worth getting an eye test from a behaviour optometrist who can look for problems which a normal eye test can't pick up on.

I think you should get a referral to a paediatric Occupational Therapist who is trained in addressing exactly these types of issues. Your school should be able to refer her or you can ask your GP to. The OT should be able to give advice on exercises and other things that can help.

DD is yr 1 and handwriting is a bit iffy (though I don't know what the rest of the class is like). As you say, she understands what she is writing/spelling but its not very legible at times.

DD has been to Occupational Therapy and physio as she has low muscle tone which also affects her hands. She does exercises and has triangular shaped pencils which seem to help with her slightly unorthodox pencil grip.

At the minute they don't write more than a few sentences at a time, so it may well be another year or two before any real issues emerge (or hopefully she will have improved).

I found writing to the teacher rather than trying to grab a few moments at the start/end of the day to be better, then meet face to face if necessary.

Of course, none of this may apply with your DD. Does she have good gross motor skills e.g, riding bike, throwing/catching, coordination? These were delayed with our DD who was a late walker too.

I reassure myself that in a few years as computers get smaller and lighter, the art of handwriting may well be lost to us all anyway and it won't matter!

thanks! I am going to either make an appointment with the teacher or if I cant write :).
Wonderinglonley she cannot ride a bike without stabilizers (we have tried - alot) she can go for a couple of feet but then falls over sideways, catching a ball is also a bit of an issue!. She was a late walker but also had physiotherapy as a baby because of a neck problem, I dont actually remember what it was called but she could only turn her head one way, I am not sure if these things are related.

I did talk to her teacher today about another issue (she has trouble relating to other children, she is fine with adults and sociable with adults but as her teacher said "she has an old head on her body ). I will try and make an appointment next week for a bit more time at the end of the day as i believe you can do this.

stabilisers still on here and anticipate they will be for a long time! OT/physio are helping us work on DD's balance and coordination, so you never know.

We have been very fortunate and every time we have asked for a referral DD has been accommodated. Had to ask though (in fairness we were in the system before she started school, I know teachers do suggest OT etc if they thinks its necessary).

Hope all goes well.