When will my child write?

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In a day and age where technology is becoming more readily used, the ability to write and draw is becoming more and more difficult for children at a school age. The current education system requires children to read and write to a set academic standard which can be overwhelming and difficult for children to maintain. Some children are capable of writing their names during kindergarten and others require more support during prep and early primary school – but what is the best way to prepare my child to be able to write?

How do I best prepare my child to write?

Being able to write requires a lot more than simply holding a pencil. It requires the grip strength to coordinate the pencil, the visual-motor function to plan out what you are trying to write and the cognition to understand what it is you are writing. This can be a lot for a young child to comprehend and can sometimes result in the psychological term, “learned helplessness”.

In psychology, learned helplessness is a state that occurs after a person has experienced a stressful situation repeatedly. They believe that they are unable to control or change the situation, so they do not try, even when opportunities for change are available. Some children become very disheartened after attempting to write over and over again without having a successful result. As a result, we start seeing the psychological impact physical difficulties (such as fine motor skills) has on a child’s overall well-being.

“But what can we do to help? They don’t enjoy writing?”

Well there are heaps of other ways to support a child’s ability to write that does not involve them having to write the same boring words over and over again. It does not have to be boring or painful but can actually be fun and inspiring to motivate the child to further develop their fine motor and writing skills.

Things children can do to prepare themselves to write

Fun gross motor activities that work on their core strength so that they can better sit up and position themselves to write.
Utilising theraputty or playdough to increase their grip strength and inrease their endurance for writing.
Doing fun creative activities to better develop their understanding of letter formation (i.e., the pre-writing skills needed to form a letter or shape).
Downloading free tracing, pencil control worksheets or activities to make writing skills more exciting.
Fun board games or activities that require a pincer grasp (e.g., Operation, Pop the Pig, Pop up Pirate, etc.).

How developmental delays or disabilities impact children learning to write?

As mentioned above, writing requires more than holding a pencil. To be able to write you need to be able to sit up, position yourself and understand what it is you are trying to write. If a child experiences difficulty in physical skills, cognition or emotional regulation they will experience difficulties learning to write.

A child with low tone will be unable to sit up and therefore they will not be able to accurately see what it is they are writing. If a child cannot recognise the letter ‘A’, it may be difficult for them to draw it without the visual or verbal support of another person. As a result many children with developmental delays or disabilities require support from Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy or Exercise Physiology. Therapists can support by:

Providing physical therapy to increase their ability to write.
Recommending assistive technology, such as specialised seating or pencil grips, to make it easier for the child to do it independently.
Educating parents or school staff to better understand the child’s needs for support.

Who do I see if I have concerns?

At Strong and Courageous, we support families to better understand a child’s strengths and provide effective evidence-based interventions to support a child’s development. Our therapists are specially qualified to help identify reasons as to why a child is struggling to write and address it through modalities such as fine motor skill development, planning and sequencing, problem solving, sustained attention and positioning.