Our step by step flow chart will guide you through the possible causes. Start from the top and work through each stage, clicking on the boxes to take you to the relevant section of our website. Identify possible reasons for your child’s reluctance to handwrite or poor handwriting speed and our suggestions on how to help them: http://bit.ly/2K5kO4A

Tips for a Child who Actively Avoids, or is Reluctant, to do Writing or Drawing Activities

• Best tip – Don’t force them, the more you push the more reluctant they will become.
• Assess their physical ability.
• If weaknesses are found play the games that will build the appropriate muscles groups.
• Develop directional skills and shape formation through activities that don’t require a pencil so that they are still developing their motor memory skills which will help them later on when they do start to draw and write.
• When ready, try timed drawing and writing activities after your child has had a good run around or physical activity (but not when they are tired).
• Set up a good writing environment where they are sitting comfortably and without distractions, such as the TV.
• Correct poor posture and keep the activity short. One minute of happy drawing is better than no minutes.
• Try a ‘Playtime Drawing /Writing Session’ (see below).
• End the sessions with a fun activity or treat.
• This will take time, patience and encouragement, each improvement, no matter how small, needs to be recognised and positively praised.
• Remember as your child’s skills develop so does their confidence to try, and their self-esteem, as they succeed where once they felt they failed.

How to Organise a Playtime Drawing/Writing Session

• When ready, try timed drawing or writing activities after your child has had a good run around or other physical activity (but not when they are tired).
• Set up a good writing environment where they are sitting comfortably and without distraction, such as having the TV on.
• Correct poor posture and keep the activity short – up to 5 minutes initially. However, one minute of happy drawing/writing is better than no minutes.
• After the drawing/writing play a non-drawing activity or game with your child. Make this break between 3 and 5 minutes long, ensuring your child knows when it will end (use a timer so they can see when they will need to stop)
• Return to the original drawing/writing activity for up to another 5 minutes.
• End the sessions with a fun activity or treat.

Tips on Running the Session

• Start with 2 drawing/writing activities and then slowly increase the drawing/writing time and/or the number of activities and reduce the playtime slot times.
• You could try to do a couple of these kind of sessions at different times during the day.
• It may take time for your child to be comfortable with the sessions. You need to show a lot of patience and encouragement, each improvement no matter how small needs to be recognised and positively praised.
• Remember as your child’s skills develop so does their confidence to try and their self-esteem grows as they succeed where once they felt they failed.

Tips on Sensory – Pressure Related Difficulties

Some children have a poor handwriting speed or just don’t want to try handwriting because of sensory pressure related difficulties and struggle to maintain and control the pressure required to handwrite.

Here are some additional tips to help support a child who is pressing down too hard with their pencil:

• Focused games and activities can help to develop both the physical strength and sensory perception areas.
• Make sure pencil grip is not too close to the tip of the pencil (check out our good grip section).
• Play dough writing – flatten a large piece of play dough/clay on to a desk and using a pencil write or draw onto it. The idea is to create smooth lines, not torn ones, which pressing too hard will create. The advantage of this activity is it gives your child instant feedback on whether they are pressing too hard or not. When a good pressure has been found ask your child to try doing it with their eyes closed and talk through how their body feels when they are using the right amount of pressure.
• Corrugated card – place some corrugated card under the writing paper – the aim is to try not to flatten the bumps in the card.
• Tin foil writing board – wrap a piece of card in tin foil and place the paper on top, the aim is to not rip the foil when writing.
• Carbon copies – use carbon paper to create an extra copy, start with two or three sheets of paper on top of the carbon paper then move to two and then one, so that your child starts developing an understanding of how much pressure is needed for a task and how that feels. Talk through with them how it feels as they need less pressure to create a copy.
• Pattern work – look at and discuss light and dark line patterns and how to create them. Then using different writing tools ask your child to try and create their own. Talk through how it feels when they are making dark lines compared to faint/pale colour lines using the same pencil or crayon.

Here are some additional tips to help support a child who is Not pressing down hard enough with their pencil:

• Focused games and activities can help to develop the physical strength and sensory perception areas.
• Crayon rubbings – Place a piece of paper over the top of the object which is being used for the rubbing and then ask the child to rub the crayon on the paper to get a rubbing print; this will need the child to apply quite a lot of pressure. When a good pressure has been found ask your child to try doing it with their eyes closed and talk through how their body feels when they are using the right amount of pressure.
• Wax drawings – rub a wax crayon all over a piece of paper then turn it over on to a plain piece of paper. Draw on the back of the wax crayoned paper and when finished lift and see another copy of the picture. The greater the pressure the more complete the hidden picture will appear.
• Carbon copies – use carbon paper to create an extra copy, start with one sheet of paper on top of the carbon paper then move to two so that your child starts to develop an understanding of how much pressure is needed for a task and how that feels.
• Use a softer pencil such as a B6 or B4 and slowly change the pencils so that they work up to a HB. Each pencil change will mean they have to exert a little more pressure to create the same line mark. B marked pencils are softer than H.
• Pattern work – look at and discuss light and dark line patterns and how to create them. Then using different writing tools ask your child to try and create their own. Talk through how it feels when they are making dark lines compared to faint/pale colour lines using the same pencil or crayon.