Writing help -websites/books/programs??

Pookybear66

New Member
Does anyone know of some good websites/books/programs to help me help my ds with writing? His spelling is getting better, but he still doesn't care about his writing. He forgets to leave spaces between words, forgets capitals and punctuation, and doesn't write his letters clearly enough to read them most days.

I have a meeting set up on Monday to review his IEP and need ideas to help improve his writing QUICK! Thanks for the help.
 

klmno

Active Member
No advice- mine is 13yo and still writes this way most of the time. Occasionally he'll write very nice and neat (by his standards- by my standards it will be legible) so I know he can do it. It's not on the top of our priority list so I don't worry about it- his teachers have never made a big issue of it, although I'm amazed if they can even read it. Are you getting complaints from teachers?
 

Superpsy

New Member
What kind of writing problem is it? Mechanics (handwriting, spelling & punctuation) or thought process (organizing thoughts, flow etc.) or both?
 

Pookybear66

New Member
A little bit of both Super. His writing is so squished together that you cna't read anything he writes. He doesn't use the space of the lines properly and also can't spell to save his life. It's just driving me crazy and I want someone to teach him proper-school or me I don't care. But he WILL LEARN or else I WILL GO CRAZY!!
 

tiredmommy

Well-Known Member
Duckie does the same thing, it's not laziness but rather a writing issue that can be addressed with Occupational Therapist (OT) services. Here's some info I pulled from my school district's website:

Philosophy of Handwriting Development


PHILOSOPHY OF HANDWRITING INSTRUCTION​

Learning to write demands the integration of cognitive, motor and perceptual skills. it is a complex process that needs to be taught systematically at developmentally appropriate stages.
Sound handwriting instruction is essential for the development of effective learners. It forms the basis for communication through written language. At the beginning, forming letters is a cognitive skill. As students become fluent, letter and word formation should become more automatic. Then less cognitive energy and attention will be spent on the mechanical part of writing and more on the content of writing.
Students with handwriting difficulties take longer to complete assignments and are unable to produce written language at the level at which they are able cognitively. Poor handwriting skill development negatively affects written language development. Problems and poor habits need to be remedied before they are well established. Direct handwriting instruction and monitoring of handwriting skills will help to reduce the number of difficulties. This should include letter formation lessons, practice opportunities, as well as feedback on performance. Our goal is for all students to reach a functional level of mastery.​


HANDWRITING PERFORMANCE COMPONENTS​

Sensory/Motor Skills:
Body laterality, Body and spatial awareness, Directionality, Visual perception, Visual-motor integration, Postural stability, Postural control, Proximal stability, In-hand manipulation, Hand separation, Hand strength, Movement and position awareness, Motor planning, Ocular motor control, Bilateral integration, eye-hand coordination, sensory integration, tactile discrimination​

Cognitive Skills:
Memory, Attention, Orientation to letters, Sequencing​

Psychosocial Skills:
Self esteem and concept, social interaction, values​

Occupational Therapy


School based Occupational Therapist (OT) sessions focus on building sensory motor foundations,
fine motor skills and prewriting/writing skills. These are some of the main
areas we address:​

KINDERGARTEN:

-Recognition of upper case and lower case letters; naming, matching,
beginning sounds
-Making upper case letters in various media; sand, paint, cutting sticks,
chalk, wooden pieces
-Letter puzzles, letters in feely boxes, letters drawn in air or on child's
back...
-Writing upper case letters on paper, writing numbers
-Hand skills: refining grasp patterns for small items, pencil grasp, hand
dominance, hand strength, wrist extension, hand arch
-Prewriting skills: tracing, coloring, drawing, copying basic shapes,
dot-to-dot, lacing, scissor skills
-Sensory motor skills: posture, balance, reflex integration, bilateral
integration, awareness of body in space
-Outdoor games to play with friends in the neighborhood (hopscotch,
chalk drawings, jumprope, kickball...

FIRST GRADE:

- Writing sentences with punctuation, capitals, spacing etc.
-Letter sounds, rhyming, letter chunks, sight word recognition
-Letter placement on writing line (tall letters, small letters, below
writing
line letters), formation of letters
-Visual-Motor skills: coloring, cutting, drawing, tracing, dot-to-dot
-Hand skills: hand strength, grasp patterns for small items, hand
dominance, hand arch, wrist extension
-Sensory motor skills: posture, balance, reflex integration, bilateral
integration, awareness of body in space
-Outdoor games (see above)


SECOND GRADE:

-Stress lower case letter formation, letter placement on line
-Writing samples stressing letter formation, spacing letters and words,
writing mechanics/parts of sentence
-Word chunks, rhyming, sight word recognition, decoding words
-Visual -Motor skills: coloring, cutting, drawing, tracing, grasp patterns
for small items, pencil grasp, wrist extension
-Sensory motor foundations; posture, balance, reflex integration,
bilateral integration, awareness of body in space
-Outdoor games (see above)


Third Grade:

- Cursive writing using the Loops and Other Groups multi-sensory
writing program
- Cursive practice using cursive BINGO, scrabble, hang man, crossword
puzzles, word finds, mystery writing and near-point/far-point speed writing
- Visual skills, hand skills and large muscle coordination activities using
ball and target games
- Some third graders learn computer keyboarding skills using software
typing games (look for typing CD's for your child to practice with at
home if they are learning typing in Occupational Therapist (OT))


Fourth and Fifth Grade:

- Learning and improving computer keyboarding skills; working on
both speed and accuracy to allow them to complete school assignments


At home encourage these skills through outdoor play and
games or hands-on activities.
 

totoro

Mom? What's a difficult child?

Pookybear66

New Member
Thank you toto i will definitely check that out.
Tiredmommy-I love this! It is perfect ammunition for what should have been taught and what needs to be reinforced now through the IEP.
THANK YOU BOTH!!!
 

LittleDudesMom

Well-Known Member
Pooky,

I think it is important to ascertain whether his issues are both or either mechanical and processing (or laziness, have to add that because it is sometimes an issue of they don't care). It makes a difference as to how they go about providing services.

Here's some good information regarding a description of dysgraphia and some interventions:

http://www.ncld.org/types-learning-disabilities/dysgraphia/helpful-writing-disability-resources

I deal with these issues with my son, however his spelling, now in 7th grade, is still nonsensical!

Sharon
 

susiestar

Roll With It
Pooky,

Can he type? Does he have an Alphasmart? an alphasmart is a very durable computer designed for school age children with problems like dysgraphia, etc... to carry from class to class. They can type notes, assignments, etc... and ALL work can be done on this. Except for work with the Occupational Therapist (OT) to improve the handwriting.

Dysgraphia is a very valid learning disorder, just like dyslexia. he isn't just being "lazy" or unwilling. It is very hard to overcome.

The SCHOOL should provide an alphasmart and teach him to use it. He is right about the age my son would have done beautifully with one, we had to fight for it later, and then wished he had had it since your child's age.

I know that some parents just buy it rather than fight over getting the school district to buy it. I believe Stella Johnson may have, not sure.

Anyway, good luck!
 

Superpsy

New Member
Some good ideas here already...I don't have too much more to add. It may be helpful to rule out vision problems (if not already done) and get an Occupational Therapy screening (most school districts will do this for free).
 
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