Dysgraphia can have two components to it. One is the handwriting component and the other is the organization and planning portion of writing. Given difficulty in either area, a child will have difficulty with writing. When dysgraphia involves difficulty with organization and planning, there is generally an underlying problem area, such as a deficit in working memory, the executive functions of organization, sequencing, planning, etc. If the difficulty is with the actual act of writing, there is usually difficulty with visual-motor integration, fine motor skills, etc.
Since children with dysgraphia often hate writing by time they are diagnosed, it is often a good idea to find other fun ways of working on writing skills without actually working on handwriting. In order to work on the physical skills needed, you can start with large format maze puzzles. If you start with large formats, where seeing how to get through the maze is pretty easy for a child, and work towards increasingly difficult and complex mazes you can make progress in the skill areas necessary for handwriting without forcing the issue of writing. Given the needed skill is in fine muscle control using a pen or pencil, working through mazes can give the needed practice in a fun, more interesting format. This type of practice is particularly effective for kids who "hate to write".
You could start with books like this:
Gross Motor Skill Mazes
And then work up to books like these:
Maze Books For Kids
Another good way to practice needed skills is through Multisensory activities.. Handwriting with soap on a large flat pan, with a finger on velvet, with gross body movements with a large chalkboard, in a sand tray, etc. Spending time each day working on drawing in a pan with his finger, or working on spelling through a multi-sensory activity can help with both handwriting and spelling simultaneously. Try to think of creative ways to "play" at school work, and that will make the task of overcoming LD issues a bit more rewarding along the way.
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**Handwriting
for Kids - This website provides printable guides for children learning
to print or write cursive. The handwriting program provided at this
site is 'traditional', but can be used in any program. If you are looking
for an inexpensive solution, this site is a great resource, however
it does not provide materials specific to teaching a child who is having
difficulty with letter and number formation.
**Handwriting
Help for Kids - programs which provide visual and verbal strategies
for learning handwriting. Children "swim, surf, and sail"
their way through learning cursive writing. This program is a great
way to allow a child to have fun while learning to write.
**Handwriting Without
Tears - This is the program we used. With the use of this program, my child who HATES writing said
that Cursive Writing was his favorite subject. Handwriting Without Tears
is simple and very easy to follow. The directions are clear and the
children can easily determine what to do as well. They have a cutsie
bunny you can get, but we didn't and I don't think it is necessary.
Handwriting Without Tears is successful because it simplifies the writing
process to build on basic pencil strokes in order to form letters, and
the program keeps writing simple.
**Audiblox - A program that addresses some of the underlying issues that contribute to dysgraphia. While this is not a 'handwriting' program, many of the skill deficits addressed through the program can help make a child's writing more legible. This program will help with sequential planning (as needed in spelling), letter size, letter spacing, focus, etc.
Free Downloadable Workbooks:
Spelling Workbooks - Downloadable from http://www.eric.ed.gov/ by entering the document number into the search box:
Spelling
for Writing:
Student
Activity Book Level
1 - document
number ED451543
Spelling
for Writing:
Student
Activity Book Level
2
- document
number ED451545
Spelling
for Writing:
Student
Activity Book Level
3
- document
number ED451547
Spelling
for Writing:
Student
Activity Book Level
4 - document
number ED451548
Spelling
for Writing:
Student
Activity Book Level
5
- document
number ED451549
.
ED451542
- Spelling for Writing: A Guidebook for Parents and Teachers. Level
1
ED451544 - Spelling for Writing: A Guidebook
for Parents and Teachers. Level 2
ED451546 - Spelling for Writing: A Guidebook
for Parents and Teachers. Level 3
ED448460 - Spelling for Writing: Instructional
Strategies.