Handwriting Support

Handwriting is a functional yet complex task that involves the interaction of lower-level perceptual-motor processes with higher-level cognitive processes, enabling the communication of thoughts through written symbols (Abbott & Berninger, 1993; Overvelde & Hulstijn, 2011). This skill is essential for full participation in school, as children spend up to half of their classroom time engaged in paper-and-pencil tasks each day (Kushki, Schwellnus, Ilyas & Chau, 2011). Consequently, difficulties with handwriting skills can significantly affect a child’s academic success and self-esteem (Feder & Majnemer, 2007). Proficiency in handwriting is strongly linked to academic achievement and serves as a predictor of general learning abilities (Kushki et al., 2011).

At Connect: Literacy, Speech and Language Services, we aim to develop children’s handwriting skills in tandem with their early phonics skills. This approach helps students become fluent in handwriting, allowing them to better concentrate on expressing their ideas and focusing on other areas like spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Our handwriting sessions are often integrated with phonics instruction, especially for our younger students.

We offer 1:1 tutoring sessions to develop children’s handwriting skills. Children will work on using an appropriate pencil grip and posture for writing. They will learn individual letter formation and accurate sizing and spacing of letters.