Dysgraphia

Dysgraphia is a learning difference that affects writing ability and fine motor skills. Poor handwriting is often the primary indicator. Dysgraphia can also interfere with spelling, word spacing, the general ability to put thoughts on paper, and makes the process of writing laboriously slow. It is a learning difference that can affect both children and adults.

An estimated 20-60% of children with ADHD also have one or more learning disabilities like dysgraphia. When the act of forming letters requires so much effort that a child forgets what he wanted to say in the first place, it’s not surprising that children with dysgraphia often hate to write, and resist doing so.

Children with dysgraphia benefit from activities that support writing skills:

• playing with clay to strengthen hand muscles

• keeping lines within mazes to develop motor control

• connecting dots or dashes to create complete letter forms

• using sand trays for letter formation

• connecting language to strokes in letter formation

• employing three levels of writing in order: gross motor vertical, gross motor horizontal, fine motor

• word generating speed drills

• graphic organizers