A primary concern of parents is: is my child holding the pencil correctly? Here are examples of functional & dysfunctional pencil grasps. To look at the actual photographs of these grasps (I could not post them here), go to:
http://www.agape1.com/pencil_grasp.htm
The inforomation presented below is from this website.
Pencil Grasp Patterns
Functional Grasp Patterns
Tripod grasp with open web space: The pencil is held with the tip of the thumb and index finger and rests against the side of the third finger. The thumb and index finger form a circle.
Quadrupod grasp with open web space: The pencil is held with the tip of the thumb, index finger, and third finger and rests against the side of the fourth finger. The thumb and index finger form a circle.
Adaptive tripod or D’Nealian grasp : The pencil is held between the index and third fingers with the tips of the thumb and index finger on the pencil. The pencil rests against the side of the third finger near its end.
Immature Grasp Patterns
Fisted grasp: The pencil is held in a fisted hand with the point of the pencil on the fifth finger side on the hand. This is typical of very young children.
Pronated grasp: The pencil is held diagonally within the hand with the tips of the thumb and index finger on the pencil. This is typical of children ages 2 to 3.
Inefficient Grasp Patterns
Five finger grasp: The pencil is held with the tips of all five fingers. The movement when writing is primarily on the fifth finger side of the hand.
Thumb tuck grasp: The pencil is held in a tripod or quadrupod grasp but with the thumb tucked under the index finger.
Thumb wrap grasp: The pencil is held in a tripod or quadrupod grasp but with the thumb wrapped over the index finger.
Tripod grasp with closed web space: The pencil is held with the tip of the thumb and index finger and rests against the side of the third finger. The thumb is rotated toward the pencil, closing the web space.
Finger wrap or interdigital brace grasp: The index and third fingers wrap around the pencil. The thumb web space is completely closed.
Flexed wrist or hooked wrist: The pencil can be held in a variety of grasps with the wrist flexed or bent. This is more typically seen with left-hand writers but is also present in some right-hand writers.
Big Strokes for Little Folks
INFORMATION OBTAINED FROM THE AUTHORS' WEBSITE AT: http://www.concentric.net/~paul1/bigstrokes.shtml
Big Strokes for Little Folks is a totally remedial intervention program for children ages six through twelve who exhibit moderate to severe difficulties performing the following basic printing skills:
entry-level letter formation
letter placement
spacing to form words and sentences
writing without reversals
The work contains an extensive pre-writing section to develop the following skills:
left to right and top to bottom visual motor sequencing
visual-motor sequencing
visual closure
geometric shape drawing
basic line conceptualization
application to constructional activities
The work presents a wide variety of tactile and kinesthetic activity suggestions to develop printing skills.
Big Strokes teaches the therapist, and then the teacher, to develop a customized writing approach to meet each student's specific learning style.
Alternate letter formation worksheets for each letter are offered to assist both right-handed and left-handed students. The book is highly visual and can be used with a hearing-impaired or deaf population.
Big Strokes has been used with children whose IQ's fall in the EMR range. Learning disabled students respond very well to this approach.
Big Strokes is always therapist directed and can be used with integrated service delivery models, or with a direct pull-out service delivery model.
Big Strokes contains 133 reproducible worksheets as well as a separate manual with activity suggestions for the therapist and the collaborating educational team. It is the result of sixteen years of my work as an occupational therapist, working within the school system.
My book can be purchased from The Psychological Corporation/Therapy Skill Builders. It is presently used throughout the United States, Canada, Israel, United Kingdom, Japan, India, and other countries around the world.
UNIQUE FEATURES OF BIG STROKES FOR LITTLE FOLKS
It offers the only workbook which contains alternate worksheets for left-handed students.
It offers extensive strategies to teach children to write from left to right. This is especially useful for left- handed students.
The book acknowledges that some left-handed students will still follow different letter formation strategies, even after remediation. This is why the alternate left-handed worksheets are offered.
Big Strokes matches the different writing styles of the individual student. Many alternative letter formation choices are available for each letter. So, for each letter, there are several worksheets for the student and therapist to choose from. The book even has worksheets which allow for "bottom up" legible letter formation as a last resort.
This work remediates ENTRY-LEVEL handwriting formation in students who exhibit moderate to severe letter formation delays.
The half-circle is used when found easier than the circle, and always used as the first stroke in commonly reversed letters.
Big Strokes contains an extensive visual-motor prewriting section to develop line, stroke, and basic shape formation and sequencing.
The book contains an extensive prewriting treatment plan for therapists which incorporates visual training, cognitive-perceptual training, and gross motor activities for basic letter formation.
There are a variety of different construction activities used to teach the child to motor plan each letter prior to writing the letter.
The book makes extensive use of kinesthetic and tactile construction materials for training.
The letter worksheets allow for flashlight tracing as well as tracing, imitating, copying, and writing from memory.
Big Strokes provides ample space on its worksheets to practice letter writing many times.
By using this approach, the therapist directs the remedial treatment. There are therapeutic treatment plans as well as educational practice lessons. In this way, team collaboration is encouraged.
The worksheets are composed of thick, wide-ruled paper, without the customary dotted middle line. For added boundaries, the therapist can lay Letraset tape over these thick gray ruled lines.
Big Strokes offers therapeutic activities to improve ideation and diagonal scanning for diagonal line formation.
The book contains a special problems section, which offers ideas about how to develop laterality, letter and word spacing.
Big Strokes contains an extensive appendix listing compatible textbooks in the areas of fine motor, ocular-motor, perceptual-motor, and sensory integration.
The work presents a Skill Timeline which shows the ages at which mainstream children develop specific prewriting and handwriting skills.
The book offers suggestions on how to take handwriting samples from students ranging from kindergarten through third grade.
The worksheets shows stroke direction using icons (or pictures), rather than confusing directional words.
Big Strokes uses two color inks to better illustrate overlapping line segments in specific letters.
Other graphic strategies are used to limit visual figure- ground confusion on the worksheets.
Auditory and picture cues are used (among other methods) to develop the proper sizing of tall and descending lower-case letters.
Extensive constructional and visual activities develop the required visual-spatial and visual-locative skills needed to properly locate the intersection of line segments to form letters.
This book was written primarily for the occupational therapist. Although it can be used collaboratively, it is a clinical intervention approach requiring the interpretation and analysis of an occupational therapist.
Big Strokes was written in consultation with a developmental optometric vision training specialist.
Big Strokes for Little Folks can be used with students whose cognitive level ranges from the average intelligence to the educable mentally retarded.
You can order Big Strokes for Little Folks, direct from The Psychological Corporation under Catalog #0761643672-BTS, by fax (800.232.1223) or by phone (800.228.0752).
First Strokes
The information presented is from: http://www.firststrokeshandwriting.com
What is the First Strokes Print Program?
The First Strokes Print Program is a multi-sensory print program designed for pre-K through 3rd grade children. The program is designed to be fun for children, and provides a way for parents, teachers, and others to effectively communicate and measure progress
How does First Strokes compare to Handwriting Without Tears (HWT) by Jan Olsen?
Similarities:
Both are multi-sensory
Both are therapeutic handwriting programs
Both are popular with schools
Both are easy to understand
Differences:
FS Print immediately generalizes to Zaner -Bloser paper and then other forms of paper
FS Cursive immediately generalizes to cursive ruled notebook paper, then regular notebook paper
First Strokes is based on the "First Stroke" of the letter - therefore it is better for students who do frequent letter reversals
First Strokes Print has a computer tutorial - and once the kids learn the "First Stroke", they can be talked through any letter. They also learn that a "short line down" letter starts on the middle divider, as "tall line down" letter starts on the top line
First Strokes gives cognitive cues in letter groups/categories
First Strokes has a story book, in color, and also the storybook is narrated on the computer
The entire philosophy of First Strokes is multi-sensory handwriting. While HWT has some slates and the "wipe, dry, try " method is an excellent multi-sensory activity, the First Strokes program has a zillion creative multi-sensory methods outlined in the manual - designed to use during therapy, or to be set up in a writing lab where a teacher can use it for students who struggle.
HWT uses an adapted paper - 2 lines, and some teachers are not too fond of having to adapt handwriting to the 2 lines - they want the kids to be able to use regular paper, the lines in the curriculum (worksheets, books, etc..). Experience at The Handwriting Clinic has shown that kids who have moderate to mild handwriting dysfunction can generalize to regular paper - usually very quickly or at least by the end of an 8 or 16 week class. The First Strokes manual give lots of good info about generalizing to regular paper.
How can I order the First Strokes Handwriting Programs?
The First Strokes program can be ordered from the First Strokes website at http://www.firststrokeshandwriting.com
I am NOT affliated with First Strokes; however, have experience with the program and have found to be VERY effective in handwriting instruction and remediation! My fellow OTs in my school system also have worked with nearly all the handwriting programs out there and prefer this one the most. :)
What is the First Strokes Print Program?
The First Strokes Print Program is a multi-sensory print program designed for pre-K through 3rd grade children. The program is designed to be fun for children, and provides a way for parents, teachers, and others to effectively communicate and measure progress
How does First Strokes compare to Handwriting Without Tears (HWT) by Jan Olsen?
Similarities:
Both are multi-sensory
Both are therapeutic handwriting programs
Both are popular with schools
Both are easy to understand
Differences:
FS Print immediately generalizes to Zaner -Bloser paper and then other forms of paper
FS Cursive immediately generalizes to cursive ruled notebook paper, then regular notebook paper
First Strokes is based on the "First Stroke" of the letter - therefore it is better for students who do frequent letter reversals
First Strokes Print has a computer tutorial - and once the kids learn the "First Stroke", they can be talked through any letter. They also learn that a "short line down" letter starts on the middle divider, as "tall line down" letter starts on the top line
First Strokes gives cognitive cues in letter groups/categories
First Strokes has a story book, in color, and also the storybook is narrated on the computer
The entire philosophy of First Strokes is multi-sensory handwriting. While HWT has some slates and the "wipe, dry, try " method is an excellent multi-sensory activity, the First Strokes program has a zillion creative multi-sensory methods outlined in the manual - designed to use during therapy, or to be set up in a writing lab where a teacher can use it for students who struggle.
HWT uses an adapted paper - 2 lines, and some teachers are not too fond of having to adapt handwriting to the 2 lines - they want the kids to be able to use regular paper, the lines in the curriculum (worksheets, books, etc..). Experience at The Handwriting Clinic has shown that kids who have moderate to mild handwriting dysfunction can generalize to regular paper - usually very quickly or at least by the end of an 8 or 16 week class. The First Strokes manual give lots of good info about generalizing to regular paper.
How can I order the First Strokes Handwriting Programs?
The First Strokes program can be ordered from the First Strokes website at http://www.firststrokeshandwriting.com
I am NOT affliated with First Strokes; however, have experience with the program and have found to be VERY effective in handwriting instruction and remediation! My fellow OTs in my school system also have worked with nearly all the handwriting programs out there and prefer this one the most. :)
The Sensible Pencil
I purchased this program a while back to use with students with handwriting difficulties. Like other handwriting programs, The Sensible Pencil teaches manuscript letters and numbers. I haven't found it to be any more or less effective than other programs. I don't tend to follow the program precisely and tend to pull out what I like and need from the binder.
According to ATClearning.com:
When the IEP calls for handwriting improvement —The Sensible Pencil hashelped thousands of children in the past 15 years. Order for your school or district today, and experience the success of others.
A Comprehensive handwriting program that teaches manuscript letters and numbers to young children and all students with special needs—especially Down Syndrome and Autism.
Teaches upper and lower case manuscript letters and numbers.
Can be used with individuals and/or small groups.
Contains pre/posttests.
Includes 200 activity sheets that eliminate the need for any other workbook.
It’s self contained, ready-to-use, no additional workbooks required.
The Sensible Pencil is an ungraded, individualized, direct instruction program for teaching upper and lower case manuscript letters and numbers. The 200 exercises provide step-by-step readiness activities that are the foundation of all writing skills. New tasks are gradually introduced while tasks already learned are continually reviewed to ensure success.
Careful consideration is given to visual clues, prompts and letter size. Letters are clustered and presented on the basis of difficulty and similarity in formation. All worksheets move the writer forward at an attainable pace and provide abundant success for the new writer and encourage independence.
The Sensible Pencil is so carefully structured that it can be used with individuals or small groups and can be presented by the teacher, aide or volunteer. For the student, it includes over 200 worksheets, pretests, posttests. Packed in a sturdy 3-Ring binder
The kit runs about $195.
Handwriting Without Tears
Handwriting Without Tears is a program that many OTs and teachers use. According to the program's website:
"The goal of Handwriting Without Tears® is to make legible and fluent handwriting an easy and automatic skill for all students. The unique and compelling curriculum design and teaching strategies facilitate this goal.
The curriculum uses multi-sensory techniques and consistent habits for letter formation to teach handwriting to all students—Pre-K through Cursive. In addition, HWT provides parents and teachers the instructional techniques and activities to help improve a child's self-confidence, pencil grip, body awareness, posture and so much more!
Handwriting Without Tears® uses fun, entertaining and educationally sound principles in its instructional methods. The lessons are well thought out and need minimal preparation time to be used. The curriculum has been successfully taught to millions of teachers, therapists and parents across the country. The end result is truly "Handwriting Without Tears" for the students, the parents the teachers and the administrators!
Handwriting Without Tears® costs about ½ the large publishers' programs. But schools and parents tell us that the real savings come from the success of the program. The curriculum is so effective that they do not have to spend time or money on evaluations, special education, and/or other extra resources. The best costs less." (http://www.hwtears.com)
Check it out....
Prewriting Practice
Prior to learning to write, a child must initiate the following strokes. These strokes are developmental and all are incorporated into letters. If your child cannot copy or independently draw these prewriting strokes, they may not be ready for writing letters. Prewriting strokes typically come before actual letter writing.
Definitions:
Imitate: looks at you do it and then tries it out
Copy: looks at written representation and draws shape
Independent: when asked "draw circle" can draw a circle without any cues
12 months Marks with pencil
18 months Scribbles spontaneously
24 months Imitates vertical line, horizontal line and circular stroke (not actual circle)
3 years Copies circle, imitates cross
4 years Copies cross, draws person with 2 body parts
4.5 Copies square, copy simple word
5 years Copies triangle, draws simple house, draws recognizable person with 6-7 parts
Copies first name
5.5 years Prints first name
6 years Prints frist and last name
Definitions:
Imitate: looks at you do it and then tries it out
Copy: looks at written representation and draws shape
Independent: when asked "draw circle" can draw a circle without any cues
12 months Marks with pencil
18 months Scribbles spontaneously
24 months Imitates vertical line, horizontal line and circular stroke (not actual circle)
3 years Copies circle, imitates cross
4 years Copies cross, draws person with 2 body parts
4.5 Copies square, copy simple word
5 years Copies triangle, draws simple house, draws recognizable person with 6-7 parts
Copies first name
5.5 years Prints first name
6 years Prints frist and last name
SchoolHouseFonts
To create worksheets for your students or children, try out this software.
I am not affiliated with this company, I just like this program....
Schoolhousefonts.com
I am not affiliated with this company, I just like this program....
Schoolhousefonts.com
Handwriting Styles
In different schools, different types of handwriting techniques are used. The technique taught to your child may not be the one that you learned!
Palmer Handwriting
There's a good chance that your grandparents learned to write using "the Palmer method." It was popularized by Austin Palmer in the early 1900s, and almost every handwriting program in existence today is a direct descendent of this style - either as an enhancement of the method, or as a reaction against it.
Palmer Handwriting
There's a good chance that your grandparents learned to write using "the Palmer method." It was popularized by Austin Palmer in the early 1900s, and almost every handwriting program in existence today is a direct descendent of this style - either as an enhancement of the method, or as a reaction against it.
The number one selling handwriting program in America. Based on the Palmer method with numerous improvements and enhancements. Zaner Bloser currently offers both their old style (traditional) alphabet, and a new, more contemporary version (simplified). More information on Zaner Bloser handwriting can be found at: http://www.zaner-bloser.com/
A Reason For® Handwriting
Using an alphabet very similar to Zaner Bloser's "simplified" style, this curriculum is based on content taken from Scripture verses. It also includes a strong outreach component, giving children a practical "reason" for using their very best handwriting. An informative, well-designed website with downloadable curriculum samples can be found at: http://www.areasonfor.com/
McDougal, Littell© Handwriting
Similar to Zaner Bloser with minor variations in style and teaching methodology.McDougal, Littell's website address is: http://www.mcdougallittell.com/
Harcourt Brace® HandwritingSimilar to Zaner Bloser with minor variations in style and teaching methodology. More information on Harcourt Brace handwriting can be found at: http://www.harcourtschool.com/
D'Nealian Handwriting
Developed in the 1960s by Don Neal Thurber (Don Neal = D'Nealian) in an effort to ease the transition from manuscript to cursive. It features a unique manuscript alphabet that reflects the cursive forms of each letter. More information on D'Nealian handwriting can be found at: http://www.scottforesman.com
A relative newcomer to italicized handwriting programs. Developed by Barbara Getty and Inga Dubay at Portland State University. While D'Nealian tends to make manuscript letters reflect cursive letters, Getty-Dubay tends to make the cursive alphabet reflect manuscript formation. Some reviewers have referred to Getty-Dubay as "calligraphy style" handwriting. More information on Getty-Dubay handwriting can be found at:
The following information was obtained from zanerbloser.com. :)
Introduction
This is the first post on this blog designed to provide simple and easy solutions for improved handwriting.
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