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Susan from Pennsylvania asks about...
Dysgraphia
"Have you ever heard of "dysgraphia"? My son
is a textbook case with dysgraphia. Wondering
what you have to say about it?
Thank you for writing, Susan! Yes, I'm very familiar with dysgraphia and for those who aren't, I'll give a little definition, and then we'll talk about treatment.Technically, dysgraphia is defined as trouble automatically remembering and mastering the sequence of muscle movements needed to write letters and/or numbers, and it's neurologically based. In a child's life, "Imagine you have brilliant ideas which you can not write down because the act of writing
causes pain so great that sometimes it makes
you cry. Even worse than the pain is the cruel fact that even when you try your best to make
your writing neat it will still look like the scribbling
of a five year-old. Your writing does not keep up
with your train of thought, and you frequently
forget what you were trying to write. You regularly
have mistakes in grammar and spelling because
what you mentally read is not the same thing
as what you physically write. Sometimes you are accused of not trying when you are working
very hard." (Fondren, 2008)
In short, dysgraphia belongs to a group of disorders known as the "invisible disabilities" because they can be frequently passed off a lack of effort, "being a boy," hurrying too fast, etc. The result of an inappropriate diagnosis can be deep frustration for the child that leads to actual lack of effort and hurrying to get your writing done!Treatment for dysgraphia usually includes the following: modifications, remediation, and accommodations. Modifications are giving the student given different tools and strategies to make the writing task easier such as using paper with raised lines for a sensory guide, trying different pencils, pencil grips, and pens to find the most comfortable one, and practicing writing letters and numbers in the air to enhance motor memory of those shapes. Remediation involves giving structured handwriting instruction to the student. Handwriting Without Tears is a writing curriculum that many students have found very helpful, and enjoyable. But whatever curriculum is used, remember to keep the sessions short and sweet, because handwriting requires considerable concentration and effort by the child. Accommodations are changes in the assignments given to a student with dysgraphia to enable their success. For example, here are a few accommodations that can be used in the place of a written book report. The student could give a power point presentation on the book. He could do a skit as one of the characters from the book. The student could create a piece of art that describes the book, compose and sing a song about the book, create a short video about the book, or use puppets to act out a scenes from the book. The goal of accommodations are to provide opportunities for the child to demonstrate their understanding of the material without letting handwriting get in the way.The final, and possibly the most important tool in my opinion, is teaching the student to type. I've started with students as young as first grade once they've demonstrated sufficient small motor skills ( I test that by slowly teaching them the letter-finger positions on the keyboard. If they enjoy trying to use these positions, then we continue. But if it's frustrating and they unconsciously resort to hunt-and-peck, then we try it again later.) I know that occupational therapists often encourage keyboarding skills to taught no sooner than 4th grade. But I've found, just as children can learn the piano sooner than that, many children enjoy and are successful with keyboarding sooner than that, too. It just requires sensitivity to the child's readiness.There are free keyboarding programs that can be downloaded. I know that Dance Mat Typing is one that children enjoy a lot. However, there are many out there, some appealing more to one child's interests than another. The secret is to keep the sessions short, regular, and rewarded with praise, or however you desire. The real reward, however, comes when a child sees their ideas presented in a form that others can actually read, and they are no longer held back by a disability, but instead have the freedom to express all of the wonderful thoughts they have bubbling inside!If you have any additional questions, please write back. I'd love to hear from you. 