Abby Barnes, M.S., CCC-SLP
If you’re looking to improve your child’s handwriting, it’s important to understand the underlying skills involved, such as hand strength, fine motor skills, and spatial awareness. Handwriting requires the hand, eyes, brain, and body to all work together. If your child is having trouble with handwriting, an occupational therapist (OT) can help. There are also simple activities you can do at home to develop your child’s handwriting.
Key takeaways
Handwriting is a complex skill that requires the development and coordination of different skills, such as pencil grasp and motor control.
Difficulty with handwriting is often linked to challenges with fine motor skills, visual-motor integration, sensory processing, spatial awareness, and attention.
Occupational therapy helps kids develop the underlying skills needed for handwriting. Therapists use fun activities and break down practice into small, targeted steps.
There are ways to help develop handwriting at home. However, some kids need professional support for clear handwriting.
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Find an OTWhat skills are needed for handwriting development?
Handwriting is one of the most important skills needed for school. It’s also one of the more complex skills for children to learn.
Handwriting is more than just holding a pencil correctly and forming letters neatly. It takes several underlying skills that all work together. Let’s take a look at the skills needed for handwriting.
Fine motor skills and hand strength
Fine motor skills involve the strength and coordination of the small muscles in the hand. Children need strong fine motor skills in order to write by hand. This helps them control their grasp on the pencil and how they write.
Pencil grasp
Holding the pencil correctly is another important part of handwriting development. The right grasp allows for efficient and comfortable handwriting.
Most children use a dynamic tripod grasp. This is where the pencil is held between the thumb and the index finger.
Another popular grasp is called the quadrupod grasp. The child uses four fingers, and the pencil rests on the ring finger. This type of grasp can work well as long as the child has good control and their hand does not get tired too easily.
Visual-motor integration
Visual-motor integration (VMI) is the ability to coordinate what the eyes see and what the hands do as they write. VMI helps kids copy letters, keep their spacing correct, and stay on the line.
What are visual motor skills? Learn how visual perceptual skills work, why they matter, and simple activities to support your child.
Spatial awareness
Spatial awareness is part of VMI. It helps kids understand things like:
Letter sizes (big vs. small)
Spacing needed between letters and words
Writing in a straight line
Motor planning
Motor planning is how a child forms letters and connects writing movements smoothly. Strong motor planning helps handwriting feel quicker and easier.
Handwriting takes more mental skills than you might realize!
Postural control and core strength
Being able to sit with good posture and a strong core helps children with their writing movements. The core refers to the muscles surrounding the abdomen, pelvis, and back. A strong core supports better fine motor movements, even though you may not think of the two being related. Kids with good posture and core strength can sit upright at their desk without feeling tired or having to shift around often.
Attention and working memory
Attention and working memory are important for improving kids’ handwriting. Children need to be able to pay attention when they’re writing. They also need to remember how to form letters as they organize their thoughts and write. Handwriting takes more mental skills than you might realize!
Fine motor skills are the small hand and finger movements we use for everyday tasks. Learn examples, activities, and how to support your child’s development at home.
What causes handwriting difficulties in kids?
Lauren Galipp, OTR, OTD, is an occupational therapist at Expressable. She explains, “Handwriting challenges typically involve a combination of factors, rather than just one cause. It’s very common for kids to have difficulty in several areas of development.”
Causes of handwriting problems can include:
Weak fine motor skills
Poor visual-motor integration
Sensory processing differences (such as pressing too hard with the pencil, or difficulty with writing because it feels uncomfortable)
Developmental coordination disorder (DCD), often called dyspraxia
Attention or executive function challenges
Dysgraphia, which is a neurological learning difference that affects handwriting, spelling, and written expression
Weakness in the core
Shoulder instability
A need for more structured teaching and practice
Learn about dysgraphia symptoms, examples, testing, and treatment options; discover how dysgraphia differs from dyslexia.
Signs your child may need help with handwriting
Developing handwriting skills is a journey. Some kids learn to write quickly, while others may need more support. You may want to consider an occupational therapy (OT) evaluation if your child:
Has handwriting that’s hard for others to read
Avoids writing or becomes emotional when they have to write
Takes longer than other kids their age to do written work
Complains of pain or says their hand feels tired when writing
Has trouble with letter size, spacing, or writing on the line
Pushes the pencil too hard or too softly
Has a hard time sitting still or upright while writing
As you read through this list, you may realize that your child shows more than one of these signs. It’s very common for kids who need OT to have difficulty with several of these skills. The sooner they can start getting support, the sooner they’ll make progress.
How OT helps improve kids’ handwriting
An occupational therapist (OT) is trained to assess and treat areas of child development that support handwriting skills, such as fine motor skills, pencil grasp, visual-motor integration, and more.
Galipp says, “Your OT will create a specialized treatment plan with goals tailored to your child. Every child’s needs are unique, so our sessions and activities are unique for each child and where they are in their development.”
In OT sessions, therapists give kids fun activities that help build the specific skills they’re working on. Handwriting exercises may include:
Pinching tweezers to pick up small objects, squeezing Play-Doh, or using tongs in games to build fine motor skills
Copying shapes and block designs or doing drawing activities to target VMI
Learning postural changes to support better writing
Writing on vertical surfaces to increase shoulder stability
Writing with chalk, in sand trays, or with shaving cream
Practicing grasp, spacing, or writing movements in smaller steps or activities to focus on specific skills
Your OT will also encourage practice at home, showing you how to help your child with exercises and activities between sessions. The more often your child practices, the more quickly they’ll improve their handwriting skills.
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Get startedHow to develop handwriting at home
An occupational therapist can determine the cause of handwriting problems and provide professional support. In addition, there are things you can do at home to help your child develop handwriting skills. Galipp recommends simple tasks where writing is part of everyday life, such as:
Writing the grocery list together
Writing a to-do list for the day
Writing a list of books they’ve read
Writing a birthday card for a friend
Labeling drawings and crafts
Practicing signing their name
When you’re working with your child at home, remember to keep practice short and positive. When handwriting is already tough for a child, it’s important to make practice upbeat. Try not to over-correct your child, and don’t shame them in any way. They are trying their best doing something that’s hard for them!
Keep practice short and positive. Your child is trying their best at something that’s hard for them!
Other fun home activities that indirectly support handwriting include:
Mazes
Dot-to-dot drawings
Drawing a picture and having your child copy it
Building with small blocks or Legos
Beading or stringing activities
Playing with PlayDoh
All of these tasks support visual, motor, and strength-related skills to help improve kids’ handwriting.
Discover how Expressable’s portal makes it easy to practice speech and occupational therapy at home, with expert tools, tips, videos, and lessons.
Find an occupational therapist for handwriting
Expressable has a team of occupational therapists trained to help kids improve their handwriting skills. Our therapy is focused on caregiver coaching, so you learn how to support your child at home for faster results. Get matched here with the right OT for your child’s unique needs.
Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Writing relies on fine motor skills, as the small muscles of the hand are needed to write clearly. However, handwriting also includes visual processing, motor planning, and attention and memory skills. Fine motor skills are just one piece of handwriting.
Poor handwriting can be caused by weak fine motor skills, an incorrect pencil grasp, visual-motor difficulties, attention challenges, or simply needing more practice or instruction. Sometimes handwriting problems can be related to disorders such as dysgraphia, dyspraxia, or sensory processing differences.
Dysgraphia is a learning difference that affects writing skills. It can include trouble with handwriting, spelling, or organizing thoughts through writing. Children with dysgraphia often need extra support or accommodations in school.
Yes, OTs help children improve the underlying skills needed for clear handwriting. This includes areas of development like fine motor strength, coordination, visual-motor integration, sensory processing, and attention and memory.
How Expressable Can Help
Concerned your child isn't reaching age-expected milestones? Looking for communication support from a professional? Expressable is a national online speech and occupational therapy practice serving children and adults. We treat all major areas of communication, feeding, and developmental skills, offer flexible hours including evenings and weekends, and accept most major health insurance plans. We’re proud to have earned more than 4,500 5-star reviews from our clients (4.83/5 average).
Our therapy model is centered on parent and caregiver involvement. Research proves that empowering caregivers to participate in their loved one’s therapy leads to better outcomes. That’s why we combine live, 1-on-1 speech and occupational therapy with personalized education and home practice activities for faster progress.
