Accomodations for handwriting

If your son is anything like me, it will be a long time before being able to use the computer will help… A lot of practice! But practicing handwritting will never make my writing good enough. I can write legibley but it’s slow and painful and tedious and embarassing and I hate it even after 38 years of practice. Meanwhile, the computer makes it possible for me to communicate in writing, therefor it’s worth working on. Here’s what I recommend… Continue getting teacher supplied notes or notes from a note taker forever. It’s not worth missing part of a lecture to make the darn letter “d” face the right direction. Write all assignments on a computer, starting now. Even if it takes a long time to write that way. The practice will be worth it. The computer is the lifesaver that is worth the time and attention. I wouldn’t have him waste any more time working on handwriting. All being forced to practice handwriting taught me was to hate school. Get you child a computer anyway you can, preferably a laptop and a good printer. Learning to use a computer did not make things easy for me… it made them possible. Before the availability of computers, I had no chance of completing college. After computers, I graduated in the top 10% of my class. Am I explaining how important this is clearly?

Hello saw your handwriting post

I have a daughter, age 9, going into 4th grade. She has been in OT for her handwriting and it has improved to the point that it is as legible or better than any other student her age. Because she has multiple LDs however, she was given an AlphaSmart. She began using to to take notes in her gifted resource class because she couldn’t copy from the board. She soon “graduated” to a stand alone computer because the AlphaSmart just doesn’t meet her needs. She uses co-writer (which has become too slow) and draft builder. She is very proud of her handwriting now but because of her spelling problems she continues to use the computer. Writing continues to be her biggest challenge, but the computer has significantly improved her performance. We paid for private keyboarding lessons at the nearly children’s hospital and she types approx 12-16 wpm now

Your son should qualify for OT through the public school system; however to be honest it was the private sensory integration OT that really got her motor planning, visual planning, sensory integration and other issues markedly improved so that, in turn, her handwriting improved. She uses a stand alone computer in her gifted classroom, and also in her gen ed. We plan to buy a laptop for her use in the next year or so.

Basically I have found and can see that if you incorporate this technology when they’re young, they seem to just feel like it’s “normal”. She has “use of assistive technology” on her IEP.

The sooner they can get used to the idea that NO, everybody does not have to be doing Exactly The Same Thing or else you Must Be Retarded, the better. It’s best to learn how to use the technology before all the energy would need to be spent using it. (DId you ever try new software on something that had to be done right away? Bad mistake!)
Don’t stop working on the handwriting — it’s got an important place. Alphasmarts have some real advantages and disadvantages so it depends on the kiddo (and budgets).

What are the advantages and disadvantages of alpha smarts? I thought I remember hearing that they have a small screen. I guess what I am trying to sort out is whether there is enough advantage to him having his own computer to be worth fighting for.

We actually have not made our son practice his handwriting at all. It has improved through the fine motor work we have done with Neuronet primarily. He gets OT once a week at school as well–but I had to fight this year to keep him qualified because his handwriting had improved so much.

Not too long ago, he told me that he hated his handwriting (which is actually very age appropriate—just too much effort). I told him I was going to teach him keyboarding. His eyes got big and he told me “none of the kids in my class know how to keyboard”. I told him his sixth grade sister does and now she types everything and he’ll just be ahead of the game. His sister has much milder handwriting issues and started trying to type in third grade. She got keyboarding lessons at school this year and it has made a tremendous difference for her.

I do think kids like him are fortunate today that computer technology is so available.

Beth

They are experimenting with co-writer with my son now. It seems to be helping. He qualifies for OT at school as well but again it is private therapy that has made the difference. Why didn’t an alpha smart meet her needs? Did the school supply the lap top?

I agree on incorporating technology early—it certainly is easier today than even ten years ago.

Beth

I am hoping that keyboarding will help my son as well. I think the output problem makes it nearly impossible for him to learn to write. He spends most of his time figuring out how to write in as few words as possible.

Thanks for sharing!!

Beth

Beth,

This is just a side comment…I do not know of a single special ed. student in our system with a school supplied laptop! All kids that I know of are provided a notetaker and/or teacher notes instead. I will say that sometimes I think it is hard for APD kids to take notes even on a laptop. For them, retyping the notetaker notes later would be a better alternative.

Janis

Janis you’re right. Our school onlyl provides laptops to physically impaired students. We will be providing our own laptop for our daughter’s use.

The AlphaSmart doesn’t help because she needs the auditory feedback for the spellcheck. She has the co-writer applet on her AlphaSmart, but can’t recognize the word so it’s practically useless. She does use one of the school’s computers in her gifted resource and in her gen ed class.

We don’t care if the school provides the laptop as long as they are open to her use of one.

I hope you don’t mind that I pop in, I am the mom on a 13 YO dyslexic son who is still struggling with his handwriting.

He’s had an IEP since the 3rd grade and began his keyboarding with an Alpha Smart. The Alpha Smart was good in the early grades when his hand were smaller. The problem he had with it was that they were shared at school and his work was erased on several occasions. This turned him off to typing.

In the 5th grade I insisted he learn to type, I had it added to his IEP. The school had him use a computerized typing program for 10 minutes a day 5 days a week. It was a long slow process that required patience by all but by the end of 6th grade he was working a 25 WPM and in mid 7th he hit his goal of 32 wpm (52 WPM on the home row).

We got him a refurbished laptop to use in school for all work that needs editing such as reports, letters, etc. It has made a big difference in his grades and he is able to produce grade level work with no less than a B.

Alsma,

Thanks for popping in :). My daughter is 9 and I am doing my best to forge the way for her re: assistive technology.

Does your son have any problems feeling different because of his use of the laptop? How do the teacher react to its use?

Sorry about the goof. I typed in Alsma name as the “author” because I was thinking about her when I typed a reply.

Beth,

I didn’t allow my son to use an Alphasmart until he could touch type at about 11 words a minute. He got keyboarding instruction on his IEP in 5th grade though 3rd or 4th would have been better. I didn’t want him trying to use it and get frustrated before he could type well enough. The limitations we founds were the 4 line screen, it lost his work a few times. I think it is important for kids to get used to having a computer if it looks like that is going to be their best chance at producing written work. If you wait to long they may not want to feel different. The Alphasmart would be good for taking notes during class lectures. The classroom computer probably is too far away from the front for notetaking. For actual essays the classroom computer with word prediction software would probably be better.

I guess I would go for both at his age; the Alphasmart for desktop notetaking (if he can touch type) and the classroom computer with word prediction if he finds it helpful.

Helen

How long did it take to get him to 11 words a minute? I have decided to teach him keyboarding this summer. I am going to have him do one10 minute practice session a day—two at the beginning. The school has agreed to do it also but with the heavy emphasis on teaching writing in fourth grade here (because of state mandated testing) I would like him to be competent by fall. I think learning to keyboard is his best chance at learning to write. Right now he writes as little as possible because he doesn’t like the physical act of putting words on paper.

Beth

Yes Helen, your right 3rd or 4th grade would have been a much better time to start the typing training. I tried to get the school to do it earlier but until I insisted on the requirement being added to the IEP with a goal, the school never got around to teaching him.

Ten minutes of practice worked real well for my son. Actually we have found that for some reason my son is very willing to study or practice if he only for to do 10 minutes. My son is a negotiator…it use to be like the negotiation of foreign policy around my house to get him to do homework. I’ve purchased a kitchen timer and he does 10 minutes of study for his vocab/spelling, French and typing practice. He has the timer he is in complete control and he actually does much better on his test, it is amazing.

Yes Leah, my son does not like anything that calls attention to his learning difference the computer included. He uses the laptop only for writing reports and edited documents, most of which are done at home or in the after school study program he attends.

Beth,

I think it was about five months of school time doing it about three times a week for twenty minutes (which probably was about 15 minutes). My critera was being able to touch type instead of hunt and peck more then the speed. They used “Type to Learn” .I had bought Mario and Slam Dunk at home but they were so tied to a game and too quick pacrd that we didn’t have success and we weren’t consistant at home. Doing it over the summer is a great idea and even if you have to implement a reward program to keep him going, I say go for it. Sue Jones has a review of typing programs on her site or on this site under LD In Depth.

My son is the same way with the physical act of writing. He writes as little as possible. He says it hurts his hand to go slow and when he goes fast it is not very readable.

Helen

I bought AVKO’s typing program which is designed for dyslexics. It goes both slower (more repetition and introduces fewer keys) and is designed for the student to say the sound as he/she types it. I haven’t tried it yet but seems like it is a good approach which will feed back into reading too—although boring. Bribery may be necessary, as you suggest. I also have a timer—which may prove useful too.

My son just completed Interactive Metronome and I have seen jumps in his fine motor skills so hopefully we can get him up to speed on typing this summer. Seems like it might be a possibility, given what you said about how long it took your son.

Beth

“Rewards” is a much nicer term than “bribes”, Beth ;-) Lol!

Janis

Our school teaches typing to all K-5 kids with Type to Learn(Sunburst)….but I have found that for my son with LD, while he did learn to touch type, composing on the computer is slower than on paper; he still writes(actually prints, as he never learned cursive) his 1st draft, then types it in, and edits it on the computer. Type to Learn has games built in(like arcade games), when they’ve reached certain levels.

Beth,

I was reading the thread on IM recently and took a look at the web site and thought it might be something to consider for my son. So you’ve seen jumps in the fine motor that you think are because of the IM. Can you tell me what differnces you have seen?

There is a provider within 20 minutes of us. Someone I work with her son is starting the week after school gets out. Her son is in the autisic spectrum and the provider told her it might take more then 15 sessions to get through because of the need to keep him focused. With my son this would not be a problem. She has given me a packet to read. I’ve got my son going to two different acedemic type camps this year so it wouldn’t work this summer. One is a camp is a Spanish Immersion Camp.

My son scored low on Processing Speed on the WISC and if it could help in this area I thought it might help with handwriting. What I like about IM is that it you go and do the therapy and don’t have to follow-up at home. Also, there is a definite end to IM.

You might have to put either a light cloth or have him type under a shelf to keep him from looking.

Helen

Helen,

We did IM for five weeks three times a week. My son did not seem to mind it and he did it right after school.

1 1/2 years ago the same therapist (who was just being trained in IM) pretested him. He scored 305 ms off beat—which is the worst category you can be in. She talked to the IM office and the suggestion was that he do some other type of OT therapy first. We then started Neuronet.

For the pretest this spring, he scored 217 ms off—a big improvement but still outside the “normal” range that IM usually mediates in the standard 15 sessions. The therapist told us we might need an additional week.

BUT my son ended IM with an average of 18 ms off beat—better than IM expects (they say 20 ms, his therapist says it is very difficult to achieve that and most therapists go for 25—otherwise they are doing it forever). I have no doubt it is because of the therapy he did first.

Changes:

1. My son can handle silverware and eat neatly.
2. He ties his shoes like a normal person—always before it was so painful to watch.
3. His endurance has increased with handwriting. Our therapist asked us to get a handwriting sample at the beginning of the program—something about 4 or five sentences long. She said kids are often more accurate after IM—not skipping words ect. Now, in my son’s case he copied a little over two sentences (4 lines) and came out of his room whining about how it was too hard and he was tired. This is very typical for him so I didn’t push it. Yesterday I gave him the same assignment. He wrote out the whole thing, put his name and an old date on it (the text was about the west last century), and put it in an envelope he had fashioned out of paper. He very proudly brought it to me. I had spied on him because I have never seen him working for so long and was convinced he must have laid down on his bed. He was diligently working.

Now, he still didn’t consistently capitalize or put periods in so its no miracle cure. There was a post last week about all the causes of handwriting difficulties and my son has had aspects of each one. I think IM mainly works on the motor planning.

But the endurance difference was really striking. His putting the old date on it and making it look like mail also suggest to me that the process was not wearing.

The therapist said that often changes are only noticed over the long haul. For example, she had a child who went from being the worst kid on the soccer team to being the team captain. The only thing that he did was IM and of course maturation.

I do think it would be worthwhile doing with your son.

Beth