Handwriting struggles

[niq]

V's (just finished 2nd grade) handwriting nosedived during the pandemic. Typing speed is close to normal but still on the slow side. Trying to navigate the situation during the short return to in-person school has been A Learning Experience For Everyone. If you you have a kiddo who did or is still is struggling with writing in 2nd grade or later, I have ... a lot of questions. If you are not comfortable answering all of them, feel free to skip.

* What level of service did the schools provide?
* How much have things improved (or not)?
* Are they on an IEP/504? How much time and effort did it take to set up? Does your kiddo have additional learning differences?
* Did you end up going paying out of pocket for service? How much?
* Were you on waitlists for OT etc? How long?
* Did writing backslide during the pandemic?
* Are you able to make any progress at home, or does that just lead to tears/fights/shutting down, so you have to have other people coach your kid?
* If you and your spouse both work 9-5 type schedules, how did you handle any extra trips to OT, specialists, etc.?
* has handwriting gotten closer to "average"? How long did it take?

We did an OT eval and we've hired a regulator tutor for the summer, I just don't know what to do beyond that, especially in terms of dealing with the school. The level of service has been not great, though I understand the return to school here was all a hot mess and everyone is burned out. My hope is that we can at least "wait and see" for the first few months.

[orval]

My ds is 14 now but has dysgraphia (not diagnosed until 3rd grade).
I will answer your questions in order.
*private school -- did provide accommodation plan but not a lot of help. Was given a laptop in 5th grade to do writing assignments, take notes, etc.
*no real improvement
*we had to do a private evaluation with OT and psych ed. Not very difficult to get accommodations approved. He also has dyscalculia (math)
*paid out of pocket for OT -- approx. $110/hour.  Did OT for 4 years
*no wait list for OT
*backslide n/a does everything on computer now
*no issues with practicing at home
*atypical work schedule so no issues
*never got closer to average

Hope that helps, feel free to ask any questions.

[niq]

Jul 1, 2021 12:46:41 GMT -5 orval said:

My ds is 14 now but has dysgraphia (not diagnosed until 3rd grade).

*backslide n/a does everything on computer now


Hope that helps, feel free to ask any questions.

Is his work pace on the computer fast enough that the school doesn't have any problems? Does he take quizzes, school tests, and/or standardized tests untimed?

[orval]

Jul 1, 2021 12:54:07 GMT -5 niq said:

Jul 1, 2021 12:46:41 GMT -5 orval said:

My ds is 14 now but has dysgraphia (not diagnosed until 3rd grade).

*backslide n/a does everything on computer now


Hope that helps, feel free to ask any questions.

Is his work pace on the computer fast enough that the school doesn't have any problems? Does he take quizzes, school tests, and/or standardized tests untimed?

He is a great typer.  He www.dancemattypingguide.com/ through OT and he learned quickly in 4th grade.  Also worked on cursive which was taught in school as well.  It is often thought of as easier but he didn't like it.
He is allowed extra time but doesn't usually need to use it. 

[savan]

My DS has dyslexia and dysgraphia, diagnosed through a private testing. That enabled us to get a 504. This may be flameful, but we focused on the dyslexia and haven’t done anything for the writing. His handwriting is bad but he gets by well enough. For a while he had an accommodation to receive a copy of any notes because he couldn’t copy fast enough. That wasn’t an issue beyond elementary school because he didn’t have to do a ton of note taking in middle school. Then with the pandemic, everything switched to typing.

[rootbeerfloat]

We had DS tested (privately) in 3rd grade. His struggles were spelling and handwriting mainly. He was not dx'd with a learning disorder (though the testing did indicate a slight issue with processing speed?), but was dx'd with anxiety and ADHD. We had a tutor, who thought he probably was dyslexic, but we discontinued that after a while. Because his test scores and grades were fine, he only qualified for the 504. His accommodations (which we still have going into 9th grade) mostly address the anxiety/ADHD, though we could've asked for more time on tests if needed.

His handwriting has improved over time, though he does write as little as possible to get his points across. He is more verbose when he types lol. Typing speed is OK. Having access to spellcheck and grammar check has helped. These are still challenging for him and probably always will be.

OT was never presented as an option, but I definitely think it could've helped.

[orval]

I will add in later grades the dysgraphia is more noticable in grammar and fluid writing. My ds did poorly in 8th grade grammar, struggles with capitalization, punctuation, and is somewhat simplistic in his writing. Dysgraphia can also present as a disability in written expression along with poor handwriting -- definitely in my son.

[kitty]

My DD's handwriting issues are different because her handwriting has always looked nice but she has had ongoing issues with getting fatigued very easily when writing because she presses too hard, which then makes it difficult to write stories, etc - basically anything more than two sentences.

I noticed this right away in K but the amount of writing expected was still mostly manageable. It got worse each year as they were expected to write longer and longer pieces. We had always discussed with teachers at conferences etc but none of us were ever sure if it was only the physical component of the writing she was struggling with or if it was the mental/thought process. Whenever I suggested getting the school OT involved, they always put me off and it never seemed 'bad' enough to request a formal eval. However, the pandemic helped put this question to rest because once they started writing solely on the chromebook her writing flourished.

When she went back in person she started having some new challenges, mainly with writing during instruction. She just finished 4th and they are starting to prep them for taking notes in class by having them copy down things like science vocab definitions instead of just giving them a handout. She would have trouble keeping up before the teacher changed the page on the smartboard. She also had trouble simultaneously writing and listening to the additional tidbits of information the teacher was dropping at the same time because it was taking all of her concentration to try to keep up with the writing.

My DS1 has an IEP at the same school so I know that they don't do evals unless there has already been a problem with academic performance and I didn't want to sit around waiting while her self-confidence was plummeting. I knew the process would be quicker if I got a referral from the pedi for a private eval. She was diagnosed privately with joint hypermobility and low tone which made it difficult to steady the pencil because her joints would have too much give and she didn't have enough hand strength to stabilize them. She had been compensating by holding it in a really tight nonfunctional grip that was causing her first joint on her index finger to be bent backwards and was extremely fatiguing. We ordered some special finger braces from amazon (at OT's direction - they probably would have just given them to us if we were going in person) and started a retraining her in a more functional grip. She also had exercises to increase her hand strength and her core strength. Each session was a mix of the three: working on the new grip, working on hand strength, and working on core strength. Eventually we weaned off the brace so she is supposed to be using her new grip on her own all the time.

* What level of service did the schools provide?
Nothing for OT...because they consider DD's issue to be a 'medical' problem, the school says it isn't their issue. Private OT only. She does get accommodations through a 504.

* How much have things improved (or not)?
Things improved quickly once we started OT and then once she made enough progress my insurance pulled the plug. I'm going to see how things go in the fall but may request more visits if I think she needs it.

* Are they on an IEP/504? How much time and effort did it take to set up? Does your kiddo have additional learning differences?
She has a 504 for the writing, no other learning differences. It was easy and quick to set up - one brief zoom meeting with the teacher (who was very supportive) and another zoom meeting with "the team" which was teacher, school psych, principal. She is allowed to switch to the chromebook if she gets fatigued, gets extra time for hand written assignments if needed, and gets a copy of the master key for things like vocab definitions, etc. One of her classmates has significant physical disabilities and a hand tremor so her classmate gets all of the same accommodations (I'm friends with her mom so I got the scoop from her) so it was easy for them to just run off another copy for my DD. The school psych also kept the specials teachers in the loop because DD was worried she was going to be "too slow" particularly in art so I asked that those teachers reassure her that it's okay if she needs some extra time for certain tasks.

* Did you end up going paying out of pocket for service? How much?
We are lucky and don't have copays for OT (might change for 2022)

* Were you on waitlists for OT etc? How long?
We were able to get right in.

* Did writing backslide during the pandemic?
I think the physical writing got worse and harder the less she did it but working on the chromebook allowed us to isolate the problem.

* Are you able to make any progress at home, or does that just lead to tears/fights/shutting down, so you have to have other people coach your kid?
OT is a lot about what you do at home the other 6x per week. We did have some resistance but I worked with the therapist to make sure the activities were things she found somewhat fun and we changed them up frequently so she wouldn't get too bored. My DD was also afraid of fitting everything into her schedule since she does a lot of extracurriculars so we worked it out with OT to where practicing her flute 'counted' as some hand strengthening that day or a 1hr swim practice 'counted' as core strengthening for that day.
* If you and your spouse both work 9-5 type schedules, how did you handle any extra trips to OT, specialists, etc.?
Because of the pandemic, she only did her eval in person and we did the weekly sessions via zoom at 4:45-5:15pm. I bought an inexpensive phone tripod to hold my phone and I logged into the zoom meeting on my laptop and on the phone so the therapist could see her face/shoulders and her hands simultaneously.

* has handwriting gotten closer to "average"? How long did it take?
We did weekly sessions for about 3 months. Things got worse when she started trying to hold her hand in a different grip and her writing got harder to read which she was very self-conscious about but her teacher was good about reassuring her that it was okay. Her OT and I also continually reassured her that the more she practiced her new grip, the better her writing would get.

[luv2rn4fun]

Jul 1, 2021 12:04:20 GMT -5 niq said:

V's (just finished 2nd grade) handwriting nosedived during the pandemic. Typing speed is close to normal but still on the slow side. Trying to navigate the situation during the short return to in-person school has been A Learning Experience For Everyone. If you you have a kiddo who did or is still is struggling with writing in 2nd grade or later, I have ... a lot of questions. If you are not comfortable answering all of them, feel free to skip.

* What level of service did the schools provide?
* How much have things improved (or not)?
* Are they on an IEP/504? How much time and effort did it take to set up? Does your kiddo have additional learning differences?
* Did you end up going paying out of pocket for service? How much?
* Were you on waitlists for OT etc? How long?
* Did writing backslide during the pandemic?
* Are you able to make any progress at home, or does that just lead to tears/fights/shutting down, so you have to have other people coach your kid?
* If you and your spouse both work 9-5 type schedules, how did you handle any extra trips to OT, specialists, etc.?
* has handwriting gotten closer to "average"? How long did it take?

We did an OT eval and we've hired a regulator tutor for the summer, I just don't know what to do beyond that, especially in terms of dealing with the school. The level of service has been not great, though I understand the return to school here was all a hot mess and everyone is burned out. My hope is that we can at least "wait and see" for the first few months.

So, not exactly what you are looking for but I will share my experience.

DS1 is 6.5yo. He was diagnosed with ASD just over 2 years ago. His school district evaluation was borderline for OT services so they took the wait and see approach. I felt it still needed to be addressed but had planned to wait til Kindergarten when they really focus on it. Fast forward…COVID hit. We decided to do a private OT assessment in July and started services. He was doing 2 days per week and has been 1 day/week since mid April when he went to full day in person. This is also when I pushed for OT reassessment through school, which turned to a full triennial review a year earlier than scheduled (assessments will take place in Aug before school starts).

He still struggles with writing (but has improved a TON and his grip is finally fixed and stronger). Between OT, my support at home and teacher support at school he has improved. But it’s frustrating for him and he has big meltdowns at home with these types of assignments. I talked to his OT, teacher, and case carrier and we all agreed to do a summer journal. Once a week he draws a picture of something fun we did and writes 3 sentences. We do it every Monday and he gets to share with his OT and case carrier (speech therapist at school) when he returns to school (he also gets a prize if he finishes it). DS1’s biggest challenges are coming up with what to write, how to spell what he wants to write, etc. His hand also gets tired when he has to do a lot of writing (numbers 1-100 was a huge ask for him).

Hopefully this helps. We do have an IEP (for 2+ years now) for his ASD diagnosis but no OT support yet (he doesn’t have behaviors at school). He also does have huge meltdowns and will scribble, rip paper, carry on for 1 hour sometimes. But he also does best for me vs his ABA people. I know to use positive reinforcement for these harder assignments and I try to help break it down for him.

[sillygoosegirl]

My situation is different since my kid is younger, but she taught herself print handwriting and set herself horrible habits that resulted in horrible handwriting. We fought with each other through Handwriting Without Tears for months and she was really offended by me wanting her to learn to form her letters a different way (ie so they'd be legible and efficient). We switched to cursive with Logic of English, and it was a night and day difference to completely start over with a new form of handwriting. Her printing is still horrible unless she remembers to use her cursive skills and leave the letters disconnected, but she can write pretty well in cursive now. We did their integrated handwriting and reading program for little kids, but they have one that is just handwriting and suitable for a 2nd-3rd grader, and you could do it in short evening lessons over the summer.

A lot of schools do not teach cursive anymore, so your child might not get a chance at it unless you are proactive about it, but there are a number of ways in which it is easier than print, in addition to potentially offering an opportunity to start fresh with an already frustrated child.

[laurenh]

This may not help because we don't have any formally diagnosed handwriting or OT issues with my oldest (just finished 3rd grade) but her printing has always been a challenge and it got particularly bad early in the pandemic because they were basically only using iPads.

We homeschooled for most of this year and used Logic of English Foundations online courses, which includes their Rhythm of Handwriting program and step by step stroke instruction videos. I cannot even adequately express how much improvement there was both in her printing but also cursive, which she had only just started learning via Handwriting Without Tears before school closed in March 2020. She finds cursive easier and more comfortable and will default to it now and as a result, she has gained much more confidence in her handwriting. Our district uses HWOT and I don't know if it just didn't click well for her but my kindergartners did LOE and ROH alongside her this year and their printing is better than hers was 2/3 of the way through 2nd grade.

My kids really enjoyed the video format and it took a significant amount of work off our plates because we really just had to sit there with them and reinforce, rather than actually lesson plan and be the lead teacher. Lessons were quick enough that we could easily build them in even with both of us working FT but admittedly we were still at home rather than trying to fit in at the end of the day.

Good luck and I hope you get some helpful ideas!

[magpie]

Not exactly the same, but DD really struggled with a proper pencil grip and the pandemic did not help. We tried every kind of pencil grip we could find and talked to the teacher (who did not seem concerned), but she still had a fist grip at the later half of kindergarten, when the pandemic hit and set us home for remote learning, which of course, did not help AT ALL with handwriting. I tried to give her handwriting lessons and assignments on my own at home, but, while she is an excellent student at school who listens to her teacher's every word, she hates any kind of instruction from me/my husband and it always leads to a lot of household strife (DD is 7 going on 13 in terms of attitude!). That said, I tried really hard to make her write one paragraph by hand daily using her neatest writing while I nagged her to hold the pencil properly. It did not help.

Fast forward to halfway through 1st grade, when she finally got to go back in-person. She still continued with a fist grip and the 1st grade teacher also did not seemed concerned (I think she was dealing with a lot of more critical learning gaps in the classroom). DD is way ahead in reading and math, so I think the teachers just don't notice her much. I work at the school, so in the last month of school, I talked to the OT casually about DD's grip and asked if it was a concern for a 7-year-old to still not have a proper pencil grip. She said that it was (more for potentially causing pain/fatigue with writing than anything else). Then she popped into the classroom, worked with DD for like 10 minutes and gave her a pencil grip tool we'd never seen before. She also said that we should all remind DD to hold the pencil properly whenever we saw her using the fist. For whatever reason, this motivated DD a ton and by the end of school, she was picking up the pencil properly on her own for the first time in her life. Her handwriting is still pretty atrocious, but I am hoping that a full year (hopefully!) of in-person instruction will help next year because I really don't think the online instruction helped at all for handwriting. I'm still also trying to get her practice every day that she is not in camp this summer with a fun writing journal (I ask that she does a page a day) and it is still causing some strife. A hometown friend and I also have our daughters writing letters to each other as penpals and that was working well for a bit at injecting some handwriting practice into her life for now.

[kate1482]

laurenh, sillygoosegirl, Wow! Rhythm of handwriting is amazing! I just received the hard copy in the mail and we did the straight letters online today. Such a difference. We pushed through handwriting without tears and it was painful.

[186momx]

DD going into 5h grade was tested for a writing this spring while fully remote. Her writing is pretty bad but not horrid. The school gave her about 5 different pencil grips to try out on her own and the speech pathologist showed her how to use them during one of their zoom meetings. They helped but her hand writing is still bad and she hates to write on top of it. She had an IEP for speech and we are in the process of adding a writing and reading to that. The district psychologist assessed her with phonological processing and auditory processing disorder. My DD who can read at a 12th grade level will be attending Title reading classes as she has no phonics skills (this knowledge has also crushed her wanting to read). Basically for handwriting they just suggest she use the computer and type everything and that can be included into her IEP. DD liked dance mat typing app on her school Chromebook.

* What level of service did the schools provide? Just starting the process...
* How much have things improved (or not)? Speech a lot, will see how things go in the fall for everything
* Are they on an IEP/504? How much time and effort did it take to set up? Does your kiddo have additional learning differences? Lots of pushing on my end and the school really pushed the deadlines to the deadline on processing my request, testing, and meeting afterwards. They have 30 working days to get me the IEP and we had our meeting June 4 so I won't get it until mid September...
* Did you end up going paying out of pocket for service? How much? Nothing at this point
* Were you on waitlists for OT etc? How long? NA
* Did writing backslide during the pandemic? Yes because DD did everything on the computer

I will say the district psychologist said to get school services for handwriting it has to be really bad. Her example was a 5th grader writing similar to a 2 year old to get school services.