Handwriting for 8yo-grade 2 Concern

[psreit]

My dd has had struggles with handwriting from the start, due to eye tracking problems and other issues probably related to her CP. I am still having her write on the three lined paper. She does pretty well getting her letters placed correctly. When she is doing copywork, she will sometimes make a capital 'T' when there is a lower case 't' in front of her. There are still areas of concern. I'm assuming it is because of her vision problem. I have been having her write her spelling words on notebook paper. She keeps everything between the two lines, even the letter 'g'. She even wants to do that sometimes on the 3-lined paper sometimes. Also she will be writing lower case letters and then in the middle of a word will make a capital letter. She knows all capital and lower case, but still mixes them when the words are not in front of her.

My question is, how long do I have dd use the 3 lined paper, and/or how much should I be concerned about how she is writing on notebook paper. Am I creating bad writing habits by letting her write her spelling words on notebook paper? I'm just not quite sure how to approach this with her.

How much should I have her correct in her copywork? Sometimes she misses letters or she has a big space in the middle of a word. Sometimes I have her redo a letter because it is totally not placed correctly. I don't want to frustrate her, but I want her to learn the correct way to do her letters and words. Maybe some of this will get better when we get her to the eye specialist again. When she had her appt. at the pediatrician the other week, we found her vision was poor in her left eye. She's not scheduled to go to the specialist until the middle of Oct., so I called about her getting in sooner. Unfortunately, her dr. is booked, so they placed her on a cancellation list.

I guess I could have her just practice problem letters on 3-lined paper. Any suggestions otherwise?

[pjdobro]

I have little experience in this but I'll share what little I have. My dc weren't the best at handwriting. It has been one of the slowest things to develop though when we got to cursive that seemed to help. One thing that I require when my dc do copywork is that it is done 100% correctly. Now, I can be somewhat of a perfectionist and sometimes I think I'm probably too hard on my dc so take that into consideration. I do think for copywork it is important to do only the amount that the child can do reasonably well. From all I've read it's best to have them do one line and do it perfectly than do 5 and make many mistakes. So in your case, I think I would decrease the amount of copywork and really work on getting what she does 100% correct. Hopefully that wouldn't discourage her to redo it if it is only a small amount. It sounds like you have a lot of vision problems to correct and that might just be the fix to the handwriting as well. In the meantime, I would try to work on doing less more perfectly.

[holdinon]

I agree with Patty on the smaller amount, but carefully done in their absolute best (whatever that is for the child). For my not-so-great (dyslexic) handwriting kiddo, I sat right with him for a l-o-n-g time watching every.single.stroke, correcting him in action. It was tedious, but we started out with only a word or two, gradually building up. He can now easily copy a fairly lengthy passage (without my supervision) in one sitting. I thought we would never see the day . But just hang in there...it comes .
Angie

[psreit]

Patty & Angie - Thanks for the encouragement. I would like to start cursive this school year. I really think she may do better with cursive. But, I want to make sure the manuscript is done well. For the most part it is. Placement is probably the biggest issue. We'll see how it goes.

[my3sons]

One thing that helped my dc to switch to notebook paper well was to put a lightly penciled in dashed line between the two lines, just to visually show them the mid-point. One of my dc said, "OH! NOW, I get it!" when I added the penciled-in dashes. I think he must have thought, "Where did that other dotted line go?!?" I did explain it, but until he saw it, I don't think he got it. Skipping lines also helped. Copywork is important to have exactly right, and doing less to get it right is better than doing more and getting some things wrong. I'd incorporate some stickers, and have dd check it herself, using a model you've written on a markerboard to correct it. It seems like both of my dc are quite happy to correct mistakes they have found in their writing on their own, as opposed to correcting mistakes I have found. I hope something here helps, but your little sweetie is so precious - I still like to remember her great big hug for me at the book fair , and you are doing so well with her. Keep on encouraging her in bite-sized amounts, and she'll continue to bloom.

In Christ,
Julie

[psreit]

Thanks, Julie. One question, though. Should I begin cursive, or should I have dd do manuscript on notebook paper first? I assumed the cursive would be started on three-lined paper. When she writes spelling words or something where she doesn't have a model, she will mix capital and lower case. i just don't know how much I should work on the manuscript before we start cursive. I'd really like to try it, but I don't want to overwhelm her with having to work hard on both. I'm having trouble deciding. Maybe I should let you see a sample of dd's copywork. I'll try to get a picture on here. It has been a while since I've done it. I'm not sure if I remember how. I'd appreciate it if you would refresh my memory.

[my3sons]

Thanks, Julie. One question, though. Should I begin cursive, or should I have dd do manuscript on notebook paper first? I assumed the cursive would be started on three-lined paper. When she writes spelling words or something where she doesn't have a model, she will mix capital and lower case. i just don't know how much I should work on the manuscript before we start cursive. I'd really like to try it, but I don't want to overwhelm her with having to work hard on both. ...

I'd probably hold off on cursive, and work more on manuscript this year, until she is not mixing capitals and lowercase. I think it would be overwhelming to do both. HTH!

In Christ,
Julie

[psreit]

Thanks, Julie. I think I will hold off. I just needed to hear it from a wise teacher.

[Tansy]

confessions of a dyslexic
To this day I still write capital letters mixed in with my words while printing.
On the positive side
Cursive totally helped! I Do not write hardly any capitol letters when I use cursive.

why did I start this habit? well I wanted to write the letters as quickly as I could befor the slippery thought of how to spell it was lost forever in the recesses of my mind. For me my mind races on and on I always felt if I don't get it down right the first time I may never remember it. And I will have to start all over again from the beginning to find where I am. Yes even when copying just one line.

Might I suggest in addition to the less is more concept the other ladies have suggested, you also copy it the way you want it to look on her paper first. (If your not doing that already.)
I suggest this for 2 reasons. One she may need to see how it is to be done over and over again. And 2 she will not have to shift her focus from 10 inches to 20 inches so her eye tracking shouldn't bother her as much. Once the handwriting is cleaner and neater hopefully by that time her eye tracking will be stronger and you can focus on that part alone.

[Tracee]

Tansy,

I love reading your posts, as all 3 of my children have dyslexia. You are such an encouragement to me. I love getting advice from someone who actually has dyslexia. That's all. I just wanted to tell you that. Keep posting!!!




Pam,

My son is in 2nd grade and also has these same issues. I try to follow the less is more. I just started copy work, so I write what I want on the paper, and he writes it on the lines below. Also, I sit there with him and watch. He still gets confused as to where to start the letter and which way to go, but he is improving. For spelling, I don't make him write on lined paper, and I don't correct handwriting errors when he is spelling.




Tracee

[psreit]

Tansy and Tracee,
Thanks for your insight. One thing you both mentioned, that I thought of doing, but have not done, is writing it on the paper and have dd copy it from that. What I have been doing is writing it on the white board and having her copy it from that. There are no lines on that, so occasionally she will get mixed up on a capital or lower case if I'm not careful to distinguish. I think I will begin writing it on her lined paper. I'm sure it would make a difference. That is how she did it when she had OT. Thanks for bringing that back to mind. Yesterday I had her write her simple sentences for grammar (subject and predicate) on the three-lined paper. She did a beautiful job! I think a lot of the mixing comes with writing without a model. She hasn't really learned rules for capitalizing, other than all of her sentences need to begin with capital and names of people need to be capitalized. So, the model on the lined paper will be a good thing.