Handwriting Top Tips
Handwriting help is one of the most common questions I get from parents and teachers alike! Whether it’s letter formation, placement, sizing, or pencil grasp – a lot of skills go into handwriting! Here are some of my top tips for working on handwriting at home:
Set Up for Success:
Check in with your child’s workspace! Try to make it as distraction free as possible and with appropriate postural support. Ideally your child’s hips, knees, and elbows should be at 90 degrees, with their feet on the floor and a supportive back rest.
What tools you use are important?
Type of pencils and paper matter! I love using regular pencils (as opposed to mechanical) that are smaller in size with a good eraser. Nothing frustrates kids (and adults) more than going to erase and ending up with a pink smear on the page. Also take into account what type of paper your child is using. Is there a lot of space to write, are the lines wide or more narrow, is it a visually cluttered worksheet? All of these factor into handwriting success.
Troubleshooting:
For Letter Formation:
- Practice making the letters in different tactile media. It could be shaving cream, play doh, blocks, cheerios, and more!
- Sing a song with the letters. This can help with remembering how to start the letters. Popular writing supports like Handwriting Without Tears have great songs that go along with letter formation, but making your own up works just as well! I would add in my own songs here but I am sure no one reading this wants to hear my off-key rendition of “How to Write the Letter A”.
- Backwards chaining is a great way to break down the letter formation into manageable chunks. Start the letter for your child and then have them finish the letter. So for letter L you draw the line down and then have your child draw the line across.
- Hand over Hand can be helpful…in moderation. When kids are learning new letters, sometimes it can be helpful to “feel” how to make the letter. This usually looks like hand over hand help, or the adult holding onto the top of the pencil and guiding the movement. This is a great first step for learning the writing mechanics, but be sure to let your child have opportunities to write it themselves too, so they don’t become reliant on that level of assistance.
For Large Sizing:
- Drawing little “houses” for the letters is my go-to trick for working on sizing. Draw a box for each letter along the line and have the child write the letter “so it fits inside the house”.
- Try practicing making the letters “small” and “big” . I know this sounds counter intuitive, but establishing the difference between letter sizing can be an important reminder to your child.
For Difficulty with Baseline Adherence
For Uppercase Letters:
Talk about astronaut and quicksand letters.
- Sometimes telling a story is the best way to help kids remember handwriting rules. Quicksand letters sink below the line, and fall into the quicksand. Astronaut letters float above the baseline and are flying away. We want the letters to stay on the ground so they don’t sink or fly into space.
For Lowercase letters:
Talk about fall/tall/ small letters.
- Fall letters include g p q y and j. They are the letters that swing below the line and can go “fishing”. I usually draw fish and jellyfish below the baseline to illustrate this. If a letter without a fish hook sinks below the line, a shark might get it!
- Tall Letters include: l k t h b d f. They are the letters who can stretch into the clouds with their tall lines. I usually draw clouds or birds above the middle lines that help illustrate this.
- Small letters are all the other letters who fit between the middle and bottom line. They need to stay in their space where they fit so perfectly!
For Fatigue:
- Take breaks! Fatigue in anything we are working on can really impact our willingness to complete that task. I know if I am tired at work, I definitely need to move around before I can keep writing my reports! Incorporating movement breaks may make homework take a little longer, but the quality will improve. Five minute dance parties, or a quick animal walk around the kitchen island can be so helpful!
- Crunchy snacks and drinking through straws! These may seem silly, but having a snack on hand can boost engagement and keep little brains working for longer.
Handwriting is challenging for many kids and parents alike! Incorporating strategies and games into writing can really improve your child’s relationship with letters and boost legibility. If you have questions about your child’s letter formation or concerns about fine motor skills, reach out to our office for a consultation!
KAELYN GREEN
Kaelyn Green is a licensed occupational therapist at Valued Voices. She is certified by the University of Southern California in Sensory Integration and is an advocate for addressing underlying sensory functioning in order to improve occupational performance. She is passionate about meeting children and families where they are at and seeks to tailor interventions to the unique needs of her clients. When she is not working, you will find Kaelyn taking care of her two goldendoodles, working in her garden, or taking trips to the Central Coast.
