when to give up on handwriting?

[ilovesushi]

My DS is 9, has dyslexia and hyper mobility. He has always struggled with handwriting and I think it is probably time to quit and look at something else - typing or assistive technology (dragon dictate etc). Anyone been through or going through similar and has any advice? thanks!

Yes I am. My son is 12. He has an EHCP and has assistive tech written all over it but the school basically ignore the advice. He has a reader and a scribe but my argument is he isn't developing independent skills. He has a laptop, which goes to school and it barely comes out of his bag. I'm in the throws of getting the EHCP reworded and tightened up. My son doesn't just struggle with handwriting though. His dyslexia is profound so reading, spelling and recording at all is a massive issue. Yet he is deemed cognitively able.

Thanks for the reply. I think assistive tech is the right way for us to go. The school have tried a laptop with him but said he didn't want to use it. I discovered it was because he didn't know how to log on and no one helped him get going so he just sat in front of the screen keeping a low profile and doing sweet FA. I've started getting him to record things on a really simple dictaphone at home before launching into something more complex. I have warned the school that whatever route we go down there will be no quick fixes and he will need lots of support whatever method we go with. Just feels like quite a leap of faith at the moment to give up on what all his classmates are doing and go a different way. x

Please do explore assistive tech. Dragon is a great tool and the new versions are really good. They also have the capability for the user to use a digital recorder and then the Dragon software will automatically transcribe what has been recorded. The school should regard this as a simple reasonable adjustment under the terms of the equality act! Getting him into using assistive tech now will be of great benefit for him as he progresses through his education.

I'll have a look at Dragon. I just had an idea it was going to be really complex. I like the idea of using the digital recorder and then dragon. For his last homework I got him to record it on a dictaphone and I transcribed it. The difference in the quality of the content is incredible. It's funny, creative, original. He could not have done that with a pencil and paper.

My son is in year 6 and for years has used a tablet or laptop for long pieces of writing.
His school were really good and did touchtyping lessons with him. He also has a scribe when needed or extra time in tests etc.

The difference in his quality of content of his work when he typesnis several levels higher than when he handwrites as he finds writing so difficult.
He had occupational therapy who provided the school with writing slope and special pencil grip that did help also.

I used to really worry that by using a laptop it would mean him getting further and further behind his peers with writing but actually most things use technology now, apart from short notes i use a computer to write long essays, emails, CV, etc etc so feel that the content of his work is more important than ham how he presents it.

Assistive technology is great!

But... a lot of young people prefer to 'look' the part, taking part in the lesson like their peers but just not recording much. They do still learn an incredible amount- it's just our school system that demands that they write.
I'd always consider technology from Y4 onwards if possible and Dragon is great.