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Last week in conferences, I had a parent ask to meet with me one on one to ask about their kid's grade/progress in math. we looked at the S's work on handouts & I thought I knew what I was gonna say (needs more practice showing thinking, using vocab, complete sentences, etc)
I said "HW Journals are a great place to get this practice." so we opened up his (digital) journal: it was like another kid! He not only had complete sentences, he had annotated graphs/diagrams, lots of explanations, etc...
I was like, "Uh, maybe this is a handwriting issue?"
I was like, "Uh, maybe this is a handwriting issue?"
Dad mentioned the kid had "chicken scratch" hand writing, said it hurt & asked if I thought digital was to blame & if hand writing practice would help. I told him I wasn't an expert, but I knew for me, I didn't grow up with digital & I had the SAME issues with handwriting.
I personally didn't find handwriting practice helpful: it hurt AND it was boring. I did show the Dad my FAVORITE pencils (triangular shape & 1.3mm lead - almost impossible for me to break!) & suggested Mancala & playing with magnets to strengthen hand muscles.
Probably part of why I'm pretty good at deciphering nearly illegible hand writing is my own hard to read handwriting! I told the parent that when I was a kid, I'd gotten a desktop between MS & HS, and my written work went from Bs to As! Based on the differences I saw, I wondered
If a laptop might do the same for his kid. The parent mentioned his kid had talked to the ELA teacher already about using a laptop for written assignments and gotten permission (since there was such a difference) & I suggested that one for all classes might help even more.
That was Thursday. Friday, I got an email from the kid saying he'd gotten a laptop and his dad had showed him the pencils and he felt really excited about this... and I swear, the email was longer than any handwritten task I'd ever gotten from him! I researched the 504 process
So that they can make it official for the kid.
I wish more adults knew that "poor handwriting" can be an indicator that there's a disconnect between a kid's capabilities & their ability to demonstrate it in written form... and to investigate that further sooner.
I wish more adults knew that "poor handwriting" can be an indicator that there's a disconnect between a kid's capabilities & their ability to demonstrate it in written form... and to investigate that further sooner.
Could it be dysgraphia? Maybe, though I've had other kids with that & their handwriting was bigger and more difficult to read.
Could it be fine motor issues? Possibly.
Could it be ADHD & brain is faster than hand? Maybe.
Not my area of expertise, so I refer this part out!
Could it be fine motor issues? Possibly.
Could it be ADHD & brain is faster than hand? Maybe.
Not my area of expertise, so I refer this part out!
I think the part that I'm frustrated by is that it took until 8th grade for a teacher to name this disconnect, even in this "digital age" where kids do submit types work regularly (starting in elementary school, I assume!).
And my school has so many kids with laptops already...
And my school has so many kids with laptops already...
