So the school report has been received and you have been told that your child needs to improve their handwriting.

This is all well and good, but what needs practicing?

What are they finding difficult and how on earth do you write a continuous cursive z?

 

So you eventually get some handwriting practice sheets home or off the web. But no amount of time spent doing them seems to make much difference. It seemed to take longer to get them started than they spent practising handwriting. In fact they seemed worse because they were unhappy and frustrated with their own progress, so the more you try to push them the more resistant they become. Eventually you think there has to be a better way than this?

Doing more of what you are already struggling with is not always the answer. Handwriting is a complex skill to learn, so here is a checklist to help you:

Check their:

• Pencil Grip: http://bit.ly/1r6uoDg
• Sitting Position: ly/1wbf8sY
• Paper Tilt: http://bit.ly/1YaewBR
• Letter Formation (are they forming their letters correctly): http://bit.ly/1dqBYFm
• Joins (are they using the correct joining strokes to join letters in words): http://bit.ly/1y0Haf7

Supporting your child’s handwriting development can be fun using physical games and activities. To check if your child needs extra physical strength support or has other specific learning needs check out these areas of our website:

Check their:

• Physical Strengths, Skills and Dexterity (Assessment): ly/1Aibiie
• Specific Handwriting Difficulties : ly/1CyFA7k
• Other Barriers to Learning: ly/1fLavUz

With the summer holidays coming up it is a great time for you to be able to observe and assess your child’s key physical strengths and skills. Armed with this knowledge you can play games and do activities which then help them to develop the strengths and skills which may be holding them back and making handwriting a difficult task to master.