There can be many simple reasons for occasional poor handwriting i.e. not really trying, writing too fast, poor writing position. Sometimes there can be physical reasons such as a hand encased in plaster after a fracture. However there are children, who despite good teaching cannot produce nice neat handwriting. They may be able to if they write very slowly and concentrate very hard, but when asked to write at normal speed it looks messy and can be hard to read. This is called Dysgraphia.It is a less well-known learning difficulty but it affects many people and is seen more in some families than others. There can be varying degrees of severity.
As well as poor handwriting there may be one or more of the following: -
An unusual pencil grip, poor spelling and poor sequencing, poor drawing and poor fine motor co-ordination, poor visual processing and visual perception
Dysgraphia causes huge difficulties. Adults with Dysgraphia will usually have reverted to printing (non cursive writing) or using a random mixture of upper and lower case letters when they write. Others will just write very slowly and or very small
Dysgraphia can interfere with a child's ability to express what they are thinking. It can prevent the child getting written work finished in time. It makes it hard for the child to write and also pay attention to what the teacher is saying. It makes it hard for the child to copy text quickly and accurately from one place to another i.e. from the blackboard.
Having dysgraphia has nothing to do with how clever the person is. Very often these children are bright with good reading skills. This makes it hard for teachers to understand why they don't seem to be able to produce the required standard of written work. They are often labelled as lazy or as not trying although in reality they are doing their best. Over time this causes emotional distress.
Dysgraphia cannot be cured. However there is much that can be done to help. The child should be referred early for occupational therapy. Ultimately though the way forward will be the computer. In this modern age the computer is replacing the pen and transforming life for those with dysgraphia. Some parents and teachers are reluctant to encourage computer use for fear that lack of practice will lead to even worse handwriting, However research has shown the opposite to be true. The better the child gets at word-processing the more the handwriting also improves. Perhaps it is to do with confidence.Once the child realises that they can produce work of high quality their confidence soars.
