Getting the Hang of Handwriting
Handwriting can be a tricky skill to teach and practice. Many kids find it hard to get motivated to write and it can become redundant and boring. To be successful in handwriting, it requires a lot of repetition and practice to get the formation just right. This is where creativity and novelty will be your best friend with handwriting practice! Here are just a few activities that are easy to do at home to help your kids get excited about this important skill!
Things to remember before getting started:
Your child needs to have adequate hand strength to hold a writing utensil before starting handwriting practice. If your child is struggling in this area, check out our blogs on theraputty exercises, Mr. Muncher and pincer grasp activities.
Your child needs to have mastered pre-writing strokes before they will have success with writing letters. Practicing horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines, along with simple shapes, is an important skill to develop before beginning handwriting.
Developmentally speaking, we can’t expect a child to write what they can’t yet read. Meaning, if your child doesn’t know what they are writing they will have a much harder time because it doesn’t hold any meaning or value to them. Making sure they have mastered letter recognition is important before you move on to writing the letters!
A Few Ways to Make Handwriting Fun!
Writing in shaving cream
Grab a baking sheet or other small tray and spread some shaving cream on it. Have your child copy from a model or write from memory. You can practice just letters or use sight words or spelling words for extra practice. This activity combines sensory play with fine motor skill development. The tactile input from the shaving cream can enhance focus and make the learning experience enjoyable and engaging (especially for our sensory-seeking kiddos). It also provides a low pressure environment to practice new skills! Since shaving cream is easily erasable, children feel free to make mistakes and try again. This can boost their confidence in a fun and low stress way!
Tracing Chalk Letters With a Water Blaster
Let’s get outside! Grab some chalk and write BIG letters on the sidewalk or driveway. Have your child use a water blaster to trace over the letters in the correct formation (i.e. Starting at the top of the letter and moving down). Make sure they are going in the proper sequence to ensure they learn how to form their letters correctly. You can also have them state out loud what stroke they are making. “Big line down” “Cross the A” to help them remember. This same activity can be used with sight words or spelling words to help with recall.
Using Wiki Sticks To Make Letters
Wiki sticks are fun tools to use when learning pre-writing strokes, beginner shapes and letters. These flexible wax sticks will adhere to most surfaces and offer a fun tactile sensory component to otherwise mundane and boring practice. Have your child bend, stretch and push these sticks onto the table, wall, window or any other appropriate surface you can think of! You can have them copy something you have made or come up with something on their own. Practice upper and lower case letters and then have them trace them with their fingers. This activity will also support finger isolation, fine motor strength and fine motor manipulation skills.
Making Handwriting a Part of an Obstacle Course
You can easily make an obstacle course at home with items you already have. Grab couch cushions, chairs, scooters and anything else your imagination can come up with to create a gross motor sequence for your child. Place individual letters (magnet letters, alphabet puzzle pieces, or just letters you have written on pieces of paper) or sight words/spelling words at the beginning of the obstacle course and have your child carry it through. Try and incorporate as much jumping, climbing and crashing as you can to provide sensory input along the way. At the end of the sequence, provide paper, chalkboard or white board for your child to practice writing whatever they carried with them. Have fun and get creative! Make sure to check our socials for an example.
Handwriting Without Tears Approach
The Handwriting Without Tears program is a wonderful tool to teach children how to write. Many school systems have adopted their program and I have used it with many of my clients over the years. They use a multi-sensory approach to practice writing letters. In their program, they suggest the adult writes a letter on a chalkboard, the child then erases the letter with a wet paper towel in same formation the adult demonstrated, the child dries with a dry paper towel in proper formation, the child blows it dry more with mouth (in same formation), and then it’s the child’s turn to write the letter! Check out our socials for a video demonstration.
