Handwriting Struggles in Children: Why Progress Sometimes Stalls
Handwriting struggles in children can be frustrating, especially when you have practiced for years and writing still doesn’t seem to get easier. As a homeschool parent, you may notice messy or slow handwriting, but you might also see difficulty with everyday tasks like using utensils, tying shoes, or climbing on the playground.
As occupational therapists, Tiffany Parsons and I look beyond the handwriting itself. Writing requires motor, sensory, visual, and cognitive skills to work together, and those skills don’t always develop at the same rate.
Sometimes the handwriting is not the whole problem. It is the clue that helps us know where to look next.
In this episode of The OT is IN, Tiffany and I talk about what parents can observe, how movement patterns can affect handwriting and other everyday activities, and when it may be time to bring an occupational therapist onto your child’s team.
Why Doesn’t Handwriting Get Easier With Practice?
Handwriting is unusual because it requires both movement and thinking. A child needs to control the pencil and coordinate their body while also remembering letter forms, organizing information on the page, and eventually using writing to communicate ideas.
Those skills don’t always develop at the same rate.
A child may have the fine motor strength to hold and control a pencil but still be developing visual-motor skills, coordination, or the cognitive skills needed to make handwriting more automatic. Tiffany describes this in the episode:
“Handwriting … is unique because not only is it a motor skill, but it’s also a cognitive skill.”
This is one reason handwriting struggles in children can look so different. One child may struggle with letter formation while another writes legibly but uses so much effort that writing is slow and tiring.
Movement development can give us additional clues. Skills such as using both sides of the body together, crossing midline, maintaining an upright posture, and coordinating different parts of the body support many everyday activities. In our conversation, Tiffany explains why she considers these movement patterns when a child comes to occupational therapy for handwriting concerns.
The goal isn’t to look back and worry about whether your child crawled long enough or met every milestone perfectly. Instead, look at what your child is doing now. Their current movement patterns, strengths, and challenges can help us understand what may be making handwriting harder and where support could be helpful.
Look at the Child, Not Just the Handwriting
When a child struggles with handwriting, it is easy to focus only on what ends up on the paper. An occupational therapist looks at both the handwriting and the child doing the writing.
Along with letter formation, spacing, sizing, and other handwriting skills, we may observe:
- How the child sits and maintains their posture
- How they hold and control the pencil
- Whether they frequently reposition their head or body
- How easily they use both sides of their body together
- How much effort writing seems to require
These observations don’t mean that we stop practicing handwriting. Children still benefit from explicit instruction and practice in handwriting. But when progress is difficult, looking at the whole child can help us understand whether other skills may also need support.
Homeschool parents can use this same observation mindset. The next time your child writes, spend a few minutes watching your child before evaluating the paper. Are they leaning heavily on the table? Constantly changing positions? Shaking out their hand? Avoiding the task? Does writing seem to require significantly more effort than you would expect?
You don’t have to diagnose what you see. You’re simply gathering information that can help you decide what support your child may need.
Look for Clues Outside of Handwriting Too
Handwriting rarely happens in isolation. Many of the skills needed for writing are also used during everyday activities.
If handwriting is difficult, notice how your child moves through the rest of the day. Do you see challenges with things like using utensils, tying shoes, managing buttons or zippers, cutting food, climbing on playground equipment, or coordinating both sides of the body?
One difficult task doesn’t necessarily mean there is a problem. We’re looking for patterns.
For example, difficulty with handwriting combined with challenges using utensils and managing fasteners gives us more information than handwriting alone. Difficulty sitting upright to write combined with avoiding climbing or other whole-body activities may give us another piece of the puzzle.
This is one of the advantages you have as a homeschool parent. You see your child across learning, play, self-care, chores, and family life. Those everyday occupations can give you valuable information about where your child is thriving and where they may need more support.
Handwriting is One Piece of the Puzzle
When handwriting is difficult, more practice isn’t always the only answer. Children do need opportunities to learn and practice handwriting, but we can also step back and notice the whole child.
Watch how your child sits, moves, coordinates their body, and participates in other everyday activities. Look for patterns rather than one isolated difficulty. Those observations can help you decide what your child needs next.
And remember, you don’t have to become an occupational therapist to support your child. Your job is to notice, stay curious, and bring in additional support when you need it.
Ready for a Next Step?
If this conversation has you wondering about the motor skills that support your child’s learning and everyday activities, start with my free Motor Skills download. It will help you better understand what you’re seeing and give you practical ideas to try at home.
Download the Motor Skills Guide
If handwriting itself continues to be a struggle, my Handwriting Class for Homeschoolers takes you deeper. I’ll help you understand the different skills involved in handwriting, identify where your child may be getting stuck, and choose practical ways to support writing in your homeschool.
Learn More About the Handwriting Class
OT is IN #102: Spotting Hidden Roadblocks to Learning: What Handwriting Can Tell Us
If handwriting practice seems endless and progress is slow, there may be more to notice than what’s happening on the page.
In this episode of The OT is IN, fellow occupational therapist and homeschool mom Tiffany Parsons joins me to talk about some of the skills that work together during handwriting. We look at handwriting through an OT lens, including posture, coordination, movement patterns, visual skills, and the effort a child uses to complete everyday tasks.
We also talk about one of the advantages homeschool parents have: you get to observe your child across their entire day. Those observations can help you recognize patterns, adjust expectations, and decide when additional support may be helpful.
In this episode you’ll hear about:
- Why handwriting requires both motor and cognitive skills
- Why the skills needed for handwriting don’t always develop at the same rate
- What an occupational therapist may observe when a child struggles with handwriting
- How posture, balance, bilateral coordination, visual skills, and movement patterns may affect participation
- Why it’s helpful to look for patterns across handwriting, self-care, play, and other daily activities
- Signs that a difficult task may warrant additional support
- How playground activities and everyday movement give us information about coordination
- Simple ways to incorporate more whole-body movement into your homeschool day
- Why parents don’t have to figure out every challenge on their own
Links and Resources From Today’s Show
Start Here
- Get The Primitive Reflexes Resource Guide
- Making Sense Of The Handwriting Puzzle Course
- Why Should I Seek Occupational Therapy?
- Join The OT Insiders Membership
Related Episodes
- Episode 8: Beyond the Pencil: Exploring Vision’s Impact on Homeschool Handwriting Success
- Episode 21: Exploring Primitive Reflexes: From Birth to Integration
- Episode 22: Supporting Children Through Play-Based Reflex Integration
- Episode 23: Blending Sensory Integration and Fitness for Better Handwriting
- Episode 24: Understanding the Handwriting Journey: Tools and Techniques for Homeschoolers
- Episode 55: Understanding Dysgraphia: Tools and Strategies for Homeschoolers
- Episode 78: How Movement Influences Learning: OT Insights for Parents
Connect and Learn More
Thank You to Our Sponsor, CTC Math
Thank you to CTC Math, the title sponsor of The OT is IN. One of the things I appreciate about CTC Math in our own homeschool is the flexibility it gives families. Lessons are short, students can work at their own pace, and parents can adjust the level of support based on what their child needs.
That fits so well with today’s conversation. When handwriting or other motor skills require a lot of effort, we can still give children opportunities to learn and demonstrate what they know without making every subject dependent on writing.
Try CTC Math free, and be sure to use the HomeschoolOT link for the special homeschool discount.
Connect With Our Guest, Tiffany Parsons
Tiffany Parsons is a pediatric occupational therapist, pastor’s wife, bonus mom, twin mom, and homeschool mom. A 2014 graduate of West Virginia University, Tiffany is passionate about helping families understand occupational therapy and how it can support not only individual children, but the family as a whole.
