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A Developmental Approach to Handwriting

A Developmental Approach to Handwriting . Tim Boezinger , OT Lisa Corbin, O T. READINESS ACTIVITIES. Divided into Four Categories: Body Management Finger Activities Manipulation Activities Pencil/Paper Activities. CHILDREN NEED OPPORTUNITIES TO MOVE AND DEVELOP THEIR MUSCLES.

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A Developmental Approach to Handwriting

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  1. A Developmental Approach to Handwriting Tim Boezinger, OT Lisa Corbin, OT

  2. READINESS ACTIVITIES Divided into Four Categories: • Body Management • Finger Activities • Manipulation Activities • Pencil/Paper Activities

  3. CHILDREN NEED OPPORTUNITIESTO MOVE ANDDEVELOPTHEIR MUSCLES

  4. Five Principles Of Motor Skill Development • Children develop motor skills in a head-to-toe direction. • Control of movement is obtained in a proximal-to-distal direction. • Stability leads to mobility and/or controlled distal movements.

  5. PrinciplesCont’d 4. Movements are first “whole-body” movements. Then the child learns to separate the movements of a specific body part. 5. Children will focus on survival needs first.

  6. Posture and Muscle Tone • Promote good posture habits early in life. • Recess, P.E. and APE are so crucial for the development of stable bodies and adequate muscle strength. • DON’T take away recess for punishment!

  7. FINE MOTOR SKILL AND STRENGTHENING ACTIVITIES • Finger snaps • Sign language alphabet (spell their names, “hi,” “OK” • Rubber band • Magic tricks • Cat’s cradle • Origami • Clothespin • Balloon volleyball (start with one, add more, and keep them all in the air) • Legos – build according to directions

  8. FINGER ACTIVITIES Many of these activities can be done with the child’s preferred hand, non-preferred hand, both hands together or alternating between hands. • Play Doh – squeeze, pinch, stretch, roll • Finger Aerobics – thumb to finger tips , alternating fingers; on same hand have children place thumb to finger tips, alternating fingers. Use music and have them do it to a rhythm.

  9. FINGER ACTIVITIES Cont’d • Traveling Fingers - Trace various shapes using one finger, several fingers or whole fist. • Finger Strengtheners • Play “pincher bugs” • Rock, paper, scissors

  10. FINGER ACTIVITIES Cont’d • Palm Play • Magic gloves • Palms up/palms down sequencing • Play “palm press” with a partner • Hand Rotators • One-hand – Turn on faucet, turn door knob • Two-hand – Open/close jar lids, turn on faucet and fill a cup, assemble/disassemble nuts/bolts, washers

  11. FINGER ACTIVITIES Cont’d • Finger Painting • Finger Flicking (exp. Flick cotton ball) • Finger Dividers – Signing, wall shadows, play “Five Fingers” • Action Poems and Songs—Finger plays, hand climbers, Thumbkin, Eency Spider

  12. FINGER ACTIVITIES Cont’d • Hand Manipulators • Stacking objects • Paper clip games • Clothespin games—”Pass the clothespins,” clothespins drop • Finger clappers, snappers and tappers – Create different patterns of snapping fingers & clapping hands • Pretend to be a piano or bongo player on desk

  13. MANIPULATION ACTIVITIES • Build match castles • Play pick-up sticks • Barrel of monkeys • Spoon activities – spoon rice, sand, peas, into different size bottles/containers

  14. MANIPULATION ACTIVITIESCont’d • Card games - concentration, sorting, build card houses • Make “feelie” boxes • Make pipe cleaner figures/shapes • Mr./Mrs. Potato Head • Draw letters/numbers on snap-together blocks – sequence alphabet, numbers, and/or make names

  15. Before We Write – Let’s Think • Do preschool children need paper and pencil to begin to write? • Are preschool children ready to hold a pencil? • How can we introduce writing to preschool children without using paper and pencil? • What comes before paper and pencil?

  16. PRE-REQUISITES FOR HANDWRITING • TACTILE EFFICIENCY • POSTURAL CONTROL • FINGER STRENGTH & DEXTERITY • WRIST ROTATION • MOTOR PLANNING • BILATERAL CONTROL • RIGHT – LEFT ORIENTATION • SPATIAL AWARENESS & ORGANIZATION • VISUALIZATION, VISUAL PURSUIT, & VISUAL RECALL • EYE/HAND COORDINATION • ATTENTION TO TASK

  17. Using the Get Set for School™ Curriculum

  18. Pre-K Students Are Not Ready for Formal Writing Instruction • Instruction should be structured but flexible, occurring throughout the day. • Child develops foundation skills: size; shape; position awareness; crayon-marker grip; language; social behavior; imitation; attention; movement • Hands-on manipulatives for instruction. • Writing paper does not have lines.

  19. Pre-K Writing Instruction cont. • Limited visual memory of letters/numbers. Visual cues required. • Movements on paper are large. • Crayons and markers vs. pencils are used. • Focus is: coloring, strokes and tracing. • Purpose is writing readiness.

  20. Handwriting Readiness – Level I • WOOD PIECES – Learn size, shape, and position words • CAPITAL LETTER CARDS – Name and build letters • MAT AND WOOD PIECES – Build letters

  21. Handwriting Readiness – Level 2 • ROLL-A-DOUGH LETTERS ™-Name and form letters. • STAMP and SEE SCREEN ™ - Name and stamp letters. • “WET-DRY-TRY” – Trace letters on the HWT slate. • GET SET for SCHOOL ™ WORKBOOK - Use crayons/markers to color pictures and shapes

  22. LEVEL 1 and LEVEL 2ACTIVITIES CAN BE INTRODUCEDSIMULTANEOUSLY

  23. Handwriting Readiness – Level 3 • GET SET FOR SCHOOL ™ WORKBOOK – Use crayons to color pictures and trace letters. • IMITATE – Imitate letters that the teacher writes.

  24. ACTIVITY PLANNING GUIDE When choosing an activity, it is important to have a working knowledge of activity analysis. That is, being able to break down an activity so that you fully understand its make-up/components and how to use the activity (functionally) within the classroom to achieve skill acquisition. As a guide, ask yourself these six questions:

  25. ACTIVITY PLANNING GUIDE • Purpose – What are you trying to accomplish with the activity that was chosen? You need an understanding of the actual activity and the different ways that it can be used to facilitate growth/skill acquisition. ALL ACTIVITIES SHOULD SERVE A PURPOSE…. • Skills – What skills do the children need (already) in order to do the activity?

  26. ACTIVITY PLANNING GUIDE 3.Materials – What supplies, tools, resources will you need for the activity? 4. Position – What position do you want the children to be in? Sitting, standing, kneeling, on stomachs, etc.

  27. ACTIVITY PLANNING GUIDE 5. Procedure – How will you go about doing the activity to include instruction, grouping of children, etc. 6. Variation – How can you modify the task such as make it easier or more complex?

  28. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES • Will be given in sequential order of development. • Does not mean just using pencils – vary writing implements. • Does not mean kids just have to sit at tables (vertical surfaces best for beginners).

  29. DEVELOPMENTAL ORDER“Pencil” Activities These skills are developed in a sequential order: 1. SCRIBBLE 2. COLOR 3. CHANNEL 4. TRACE 5. IMITATE 6. COPY 7. GENERATE

  30. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES 1. SCRIBBLE • Experiment with pressure of writing implement • Draw continuous lines on paper without lifting pencil or letting lines touch • Draw lines to represent emotions; left-to-right, top-to-bottom; zig-zag=anger • Create scribble pictures or scribble critters • Draw pattern and color in the sections

  31. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES 2. COLOR – Has a developmental sequence • Random coloring • Simple, open shapes – emphasize use of vertical, horizontal, or slanted strokes • Simple, open shapes that require moving around curves • Compartment shapes with different angles/curves (start with large compartments)

  32. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES 3. CHANNEL – Prerequisite to tracing; drawing a line between two guiding lines. The “channel” provides a margin of error. DO NOT change paper or hand position in order to accommodate directional changes! ACTIVITIES: • Finger paints • Templates • Mazes • Draw your own

  33. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES 4. TRACE – DO NOT change hand or paper position to accommodate directional changes. ACTIVITIES: • Finger paints; chalk/dry erase board • Trace sandpaper letters, numbers and high frequency words • Can trace solids lines, to dotted lines, to letters/numbers • Do letters/numbers dot-to-dot pictures

  34. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES 5. IMITATE – Teacher demonstrates how to form a shape, letter or number, and child reproduces it. DO NOT SKIP THIS PROCESS! • “Show and Tell” (and talk them through) proper formation • Check for understanding

  35. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES 6. COPY – Teaches children formal handwriting and drawing skills PROGRESSION OF COPYING: • Copy simple lines and shapes • Copy more complex shapes • Completion activities – add missing details to pictures • Reproducing pictures and diagrams

  36. “PENCIL” AND PAPER ACTIVITIES 7. GENERATE– The child is now ready to draw or write from memory.

  37. Determining Ability Level • Is the student able to form the nine prerequisite strokes? • Are they able to identify letters of the alphabet?

  38. Prewriting Warm-Up“Drawings” • How do you keep the cows in? Fence- Vertical/horizontal lines • Do you like pizza? Big circle, divide into 1/8th, and add toppings • What do you live in? Square house, triangle roof, rectangle door, etc.

  39. WAYS TO FACILITATE APPROPRIATE PENCIL GRASP • USE SMALL PIECES OF CRAYON, CHALK USING THUMB, INDEX, MIDDLE FINGERS • VERTICAL WRITING SURFACES (easel, chalkboard, dry erase board) • FINGER STRENGTHENING ACTIVITIES (PLAY-DOH, BUTTONING)

  40. CHALKBOARD ACTIVITIES -Recommend using small pieces of chalk – facilitates a good tripod grasp (first two fingers and thumb). -Erasing and retracing of letters with finger provides good tactile/kinesthetic input.

  41. SIZE OF WRITING TOOL • LARGE PRIMARY PENCIL MAY NOT BE APPROPRIATE (BIGGER IS NOT ALWAYS BETTER) • MAY NEED SHORTER WRITING TOOL (golf pencil length) • PENCIL GRIP MAY GIVE THE DIAMETER NEEDED AND FACILITATE GRASP

  42. PENCIL GRASP • Enables student to have control of pencil, speed, legibility • Difficult to change once established • Young child – can remediate but it’s best to teach proper habits from the start

  43. Custom Fit! • Work that is beyond a child’s ability will lead to failure. • Some children may need extra time and experiences to be successful. • Progress the children as they show readiness.

  44. Helpful Websites 1.Handwriting Without Tears www.hwtears.com 2.Sign-up for printable worksheets (mazes, dot to dot) www.activitypages.com 2. Activities for preschool age childrenhood.com http://www.shrewsbury-ma.gov/schools/beal/readiness/finemotoractivities.html 3. Links to early childhood sites www.angelfire.com/ga/prespecial/page45.html 4. Scribble Art www.thekcrew.net

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