Orthographic Processing and Handwriting Handwriting evaluations usually include legibility, speed, spacing and pencil grip but do you consider orthographic processing? Orthographic processing is the ability to understand and recognize writing components such as spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Students with weak orthographic processing rely very heavily on sounding out common words that should be in memory, which can result […]
Pen Grip Force Fine Motor Skills and Handwriting in Children The Australian Occupational Therapy Journal published research examining pen-grip kinetics during writing tasks of 181 school-age children (5-12 years old) and investigate the relationship between the kinetic factors and fine motor skills. A force acquisition pen was to measure the forces applied from the digits and […]
Add Laughter to Your Handwriting Practice Here are some FUN free decoding jokes to add laughter to your handwriting practice! This activity was created by Thia Triggs, school based Occupational Therapist, and is part of the complete Decoding Jokes packet here. Not only does this activity provide handwriting practice, it also encourages: Executive function and […]
Instruction Influences Handwriting Automaticity in Children Reading and Writing published research on handwriting automaticity of 177 Australian children in 23 classrooms at the end of kindergarten and the amount and type of writing instruction they experienced before entering first grade. Individual child level data (e.g., handwriting automaticity and word-reading skills) were collected and teachers were […]
Pediatric occupational therapists sometimes recommend a weighted pencil to improve handwriting legibility and increase pencil pressure but what does the evidence say? Not much… I found one recent study on the use of weighted pencils and handwriting. In theory, the purpose of the weighted pencil is to provide extra proprioceptive input in the fingers and […]
This summer word bank collage is perfect to encourage reading, handwriting and coloring. This summer word bank is FREE for you to download (see bottom of post) to our subscribers. Students can read the words, refer to it when writing or simply color in the collage. It is part of the Summer Word Collage complete […]
When students press too hard during handwriting tasks, the hand can fatigue, paper can rip and legibility may decrease. Recently, a reader asked for tips and suggestions to help decrease pencil pressure for when students press too hard during handwriting tasks. Here are 10 suggestions to help children reduce pencil pressure when writing: Write on […]
This blue bird color, write and draw freebie is from the latest digital download, Bird Color Packet. This activity is perfect for Spring time! Print out the black and white worksheet and ask the child to color the word blue, color the bird blue, write the word blue and draw something that is the color […]
Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders published research on the influence of time pressure on the handwriting of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of the current study was to determine the handwriting profile of children with ASD across both non-speeded and speeded conditions, with particular focus on spacing difficulties and handwriting errors. In […]
Complete this picture of the hot air balloon while practicing prewriting lines and strokes. This is a free printable that you can download below to practice diagonal and curved lines. It is from the Prewriting Handwriting Activity Pages packet. After the child completes the picture, he/she can color or paint it. DOWNLOAD PREWRITING LINES AND […]