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Many parents have asked how to improve handwriting skills in their older child or teenager. The answer is not always straightforward, but I try to give some suggestions in this page.
If you feel your child's poor handwriting is affecting academic performance, please do seek an occupational therapy evaluation to help get to the bottom of the issues.
- Strengthen fine motor skills
- Try a pencil grip
- Strengthen the upper body
- Try italic cursive
- Understand basic cursive rules
- Frequent breaks
- Pick your battles
- Figure a work-around
- More thoughts
For your convenience, I have linked to products on Amazon (marked #Ad)that are similar to the ones I use myself - I may receive a smallcommission if you purchase something through these links, which helpssupport this site. However, you are under no obligation to purchaseanything!
Strengthen Fine Motor Skills
Increasing hand strength and finger dexterity can help your older childget more control over the pencil (and hopefully improve handwriting as aresult). Strengthening fine motor skills should also help improve endurance of writing tasks.
Encourage your older child to get involved with general household tasksthat will use hand and finger muscles may help strengthen the hands -tasks like cutting with scissors, using a screwdriver, helping dad sortnails and screws in the garage, sewing and knitting...
You will find some fine motor exercise ideas that may appeal to your older child on this page of my site.
Older kids and teens can still benefit from strengthening their hand muscles and getting better control over their fingers with focused activities. But instead of doing the playful activities that younger kids do, call it a "hand exercise program".
Keep the suggested items at hand and encourage your child to get intothe habit of using them regularly before and during long writingexercises, for just 2-3 minutes at a time.
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Try a Pencil Grip
I am not usually in favor of recommending the use of pencil gripswithout first addressing any underlying motor issues. However, for olderkids, using a good grip could help reduce fatigue and prevent musclecramps, which may help to improve handwriting. Read my page about using pencil grips to find out more.
Let your child try different pencil grips#Ad (pencil grippers) to see if any of those help reducefatigue.
using a good pencil grip may reduce fatigue
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Strengthen the Upper Body
Encourage your child to build upper body strength through sports,climbing, swimming and targeted exercises. These will help strengthenand stabilizethe shoulder muscles to free up the hand muscles for handwriting.
I have some ideas for shoulder exercises on my site and in my e-book(aimed at younger kids, but older kids may still benefit) - have a lookand see if there are any you can encourage your child to do.
Ifyour child gets tense and tired easily during handwriting, then trythese exercises as a break. Developing upper body strength may be just what your child needs to help improve handwriting!
shoulder exercises may help
Gross Motor Printables
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Italic Cursive Can Help Improve Handwriting
Some children really struggle to write (and to read) the loops of regular cursive handwriting. My own kids benefited from the Getty-Dubay handwriting books, which are italic. The cursive handwriting books helped all of my own children to develop flowing handwriting, which was much neater than their printed handwriting.
I recommend italic cursive especially for kids who struggle with fine motor and visual perceptual skills.
Italic Handwriting Book F#Ad is designed for use in Grade 5 for those who have used the earlier books. But both Book F and Book G#Adwould be suitable for older kids (sixth grade up) who want to work on their handwriting skills.If your child requires slightly easier work to start with, then try Book E#Ad .
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Understand And Practice Regular Cursive
If the italic cursive mentioned above is not for you, or your child's school prefers regular cursive, then understanding the basic cursive rules may help your child master neater handwriting, especially if your child has not had any formal cursive writing lessons.
Hop over to my friend Mary's page on cursive handwriting, read her helpful explanations of how it works, and download her free cursive practice worksheets!
View Cursive Writing Rules and Free Worksheets here! These are good for kids in grade school.
If your teen has had a bit of cursive practice and needs somepractice in order to master it, then you can try this cursivehandwriting book for teens#Ad from Amazon.
The first section of thebook revises the cursive formation of each letter - just revise andpractice until your teen knows the letter. No need to complete each pageof letters if your teen already knows them.
Then there are pages ofwords to practice and then cool quotes from famous people to copy out.
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Frequent Breaks
If your child tires easily or becomes distracted, then let them have aquick break instead of plowing through and risking deterioratinghandwriting.
A good use of a break time would be to do somegross motor exercises (especially shoulder exercises), fine motorexercises, or getting some water to drink.
You could also try some on-the-spot aerobic exercises - these fun brain breaks, designed by a fellow therapist, could help spark your child and give them the boost they need to focus on handwriting after a break.
Pick Your Battles
Sit down with your child and decide together which subjects/occasions can get away with poorhandwriting and which ones absolutely have to be good.
On tasks where creative input isbeing rated, your child may be able to write more freely and easily iffreed from the effort of writing neatly. A neat final draft may berequired, but being allowed to type or scrawl at first may get thecreative juices flowing. Acceptthat legible can be good enough for these times!
It is tiring towrite neatly, but if it is not required at every lesson andon every occasion, then it is easier to write neatly when it really doesmatter.
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Figure A Work-Around
You can alsoconsider being a scribe for your child if you are homeschooling, orconsider asking for a facilitator in the school system.
When your child isbrainstorming a topic, or planning answers and structure for a project,it can really help to have someone else jot down those thoughts and answersas they flow out. Once the scribe has the rough draft on paper, yourchild can then refine it and write it out neatly, without being tiredfrom the initial handwriting effort.
Learning keyboarding skills has helped many children who struggle with poor handwriting - see what your child's school will allow in terms of typed essays and assignments.
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Some more food for thought...
When an older child is referred for handwriting issues, my first recommendation is that we first think about WHYthe handwriting is so lousy.
- Has your child always had a poor pencilgrip and weak fine motor skills?
- Or is handwriting poor because yourchild rushes through it?
If your child always rushes, then motivation may be more of anissue than fine motor delays.
If your child is always rushing writingtasks, what is the reason behind it?
- distractability and poor concentration?
- A general dislike ofschoolwork, boredom with that particular topic or a need to finishquickly to move on to the next activity?
If your child can write neatlyon occasion, what is it that motivates them?
Factors Affecting Handwriting
One motivator is to use your child’s dream vocation to inspireand encourage – I tell my son that if he wants to be an airplane pilot,he has to make sure his figures (numbers) are legible, otherwise he willend up at the wrong coordinate on the map!
Answering these questions honestly could help you unlock some keys to help your older child improve handwriting skills.
I hope you found the tips and resources on this page to be helpful!
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I bring a wealth of expertise in the field of occupational therapy, particularly in addressing handwriting challenges in older children and teenagers. With a deep understanding of fine motor skills, motor issues, and effective strategies for improving handwriting, I aim to provide valuable insights based on practical experience.
In the provided article about improving handwriting skills in older kids and teenagers, several key concepts are discussed. Let's delve into each of these concepts:
-
Strengthen Fine Motor Skills:
- Emphasizes the importance of increasing hand strength and finger dexterity for better control over the pencil and improved endurance during writing tasks.
- Recommends engaging older children in general household tasks to strengthen hand and finger muscles, such as cutting with scissors, using a screwdriver, and engaging in activities like sewing and knitting.
-
Try a Pencil Grip:
- Suggests the use of pencil grips for older kids to reduce fatigue and prevent muscle cramps during writing.
- Encourages trying different pencil grips to find the most comfortable and effective one.
-
Strengthen the Upper Body:
- Highlights the role of upper body strength in freeing up hand muscles for handwriting.
- Recommends activities like sports, climbing, swimming, and targeted exercises to build shoulder muscles.
-
Italic Cursive:
- Advocates for the use of italic cursive handwriting, especially for children struggling with regular cursive loops.
- Recommends specific italic cursive handwriting books for older kids to develop flowing and neater handwriting.
-
Understand and Practice Regular Cursive:
- Provides resources for understanding basic cursive rules and offers free cursive practice worksheets.
- Recommends a cursive handwriting book for teens to revise cursive formation and practice words.
-
Frequent Breaks:
- Advises taking breaks during writing tasks, especially for children who tire easily or become distracted.
- Suggests using break time for gross motor exercises, fine motor exercises, or hydration.
-
Pick Your Battles:
- Encourages a collaborative approach with the child to decide when neat handwriting is crucial and when legibility can be more relaxed.
- Acknowledges that allowing creative freedom in certain tasks may enhance overall writing experience.
-
Figure A Work-Around:
- Proposes being a scribe for the child, especially in brainstorming or planning phases.
- Considers the option of learning keyboarding skills as an alternative for children struggling with poor handwriting.
-
Understanding Motivation:
- Raises questions about the motivation behind poor handwriting, including factors like rush, distractibility, boredom, or a dislike of schoolwork.
- Advocates for using a child's dream vocation as motivation to improve handwriting.
In conclusion, the provided tips and resources offer a comprehensive approach to addressing handwriting challenges in older kids and teenagers, encompassing physical exercises, alternative writing styles, and considerations for motivation and individual preferences.
