However, those who are enhancing their skill might be intrigued to know some handwriting facts which can help them know more and practice. Our list of handwriting facts will educate you about unique knowledge about good and bad handwriting. Traverse through these insights to relish and make use of valuable information. 

How do facts help for better handwriting?

Facts are often interesting to go through, especially when they are about a skill that an individual is looking to acquire. Related to handwriting, here are a few reasons why you should comprehend important facts:

• Facts come with proof and thereby can be discerned as truth. Individuals can take keep these insights in mind to enhance their knowledge about handwriting. 
• Facts can help people to come out of multiple perspectives. In other words, they can mark the end of myths about styles of handwriting.
• These can educate about attributes needed to improve handwriting
• Can introduce new insights  about handwriting that was previously unknown to the individual
• Facts can act as foundation for further research on handwriting-related concepts. 

Facts about handwriting- Good or bad but worth comprehending!

Here are some interesting facts that can motivate you toward handwriting. Check out insights of each fact in detail:

1. Good handwriting can have an effect on language fluency, and spelling 

Sibylle Hurschler Lichtsteiner^[1] made a research to observe the effect of handwriting training on various attributes like fluency, spelling, and text quality. Tests made on third-grade students showed that good handwriting skills facilitate in building a phonological loop of working memory to address fluency and spelling.

2. Good Handwriting shows that the person is organized and balanced.

Neat handwriting is characterized by appropriate pen pressure, size, and slant. This means that people need to maintain a balance between all the attributes to organize text. This reflects the personality of the person -showing they are disciplined, arranged, and Stable. 

3. Handwriting is different for every person. 

There are five attributes^[2] of handwriting: line quality, pen pressure, size, slant, and pen lifts. These attributes are often responsible for determining the subjective size and shape of a person’s handwriting. 

4. People with good handwriting have the correct word space, which reveals their personality: 

Good handwriting is the one in which the formation is perfect, and the word spacing is optimum. However, people with good handwriting often have a perfect word space that reflects the ‘social’ aspect of their personality. These people are often socially sound and like to have people around them. At the same time, they like to be free and independent. 

While good handwriting facts can be used to encourage individuals, bad handwriting facts can also work with the psych of the person in a much similar way. Here are some facts about bad handwriting: 

5. Bad handwriting is a sign of creativity and intelligence

People with great intelligence may think about facts faster than writing. Linking these two attributes, people may have ugly handwriting. An article from the Times of India reads out that the link between bad handwriting and intelligence is scientifically proven. Also, it outlines that ugly handwriting can prove the person to be an independent thinker. 

6. Handwriting can be improved with a better perception of language and motor controls. 

Florence Bara^[3] did research to evaluate how haptics helps in teaching handwriting. A couple of tests were conducted by the team- the second of which evaluates the role of visual-motor skills and perception in handwriting. The results of this test showed that these attributes are important for good handwriting, which implies that developing motor skills and perception can improve handwriting.

7. If your handwriting slants up as sentence graduates, you represent high levels of ambition.

A lot go people have slanty handwriting, that often slants upward, especially when the sentence graduates. These people are often the ones who have high levels of ambition. But, they can also be arrogant as individuals. 

8. Lack of form and rhythm could also be indicative of emotional volatility.

Lack of form in handwriting can be indicative of poor self-esteem, insecurity, and emotional volatility. The unattractive handwriting could also indicate that an individual has a bad and short temper, along with a troubled past. 

General handwriting facts 

While a lot of people practice calligraphy and aim to get a grasp on good handwriting; for that lot, getting to know some general handwriting facts might be fun and engaging. 

1. January 23^rd is observed as National Handwriting Day every year. 

This day was created by the Writing Instrument Manufacturers  Association with the aim of advertising the consumption of pencils, pens, and other stationery in 1970. Later, it became a popular day to recall the vintage art of handwriting in the world of advanced technology. There is a reason behind choosing January 23. It was the birthday of John Hancock, who was the first person to sign the declaration of independence. 

2. There is a residual correlation between Print and Cursive Writing

Doreen Armitage^[4]  studied the relationship between better print style and cursive writing. It was outlined that there is a low positive correlation between print and cursive style. Accordingly, it is concluded that teachers may look into learning print style and then gradually teaching students about cursive handwriting. 

3. Cursive Writing was first seen in the 1600s

Writing scripts was evident right from Sumerian civilizations but there were no specific regulations to make scripts neat and organized. It was in the 1600s that a standardized format was developed that ensured it was neat, smooth, and understandable. While it was called Roundhead, this style is still one of the commonly used cursive styles today. 

4. Until the 18th century, the use of Punctuation was minimal

Literacy became popular in the 18th century. In this century, a large number of books were published and also got popular among the masses. As a part of this, the importance and use of punctuation gained importance. 

How to make use of these facts

Traversing through the above insights must be accompanied by proper application. Here are a few of our suggestions where these can come in handy:

• Individuals can make use of them to improve their personalities. As handwriting is linked to attributes like motor skills, fluency, and balance, individuals can improve handwriting to address these traits. 
• People can explore history to discern actually what traits of handwriting are needed in the present day.
• With these insights, teachers can suggest feedback to their students related to their handwriting in class.
• Understand that no two people’s handwriting may look the same and focus on relevant certainties instead of improving penmanship. 

Before we wind up…

Along with understanding the importance of handwriting, it is equally important to discern tips and strategies to ameliorate them. The list of facts that we have elucidated above can motivate and educate you with insights to improve your penmanship. Also, explore the benefits and application of these facts to make sure you discern them in the right sense. Share this knowledge with your loved ones to create a scope for better handwriting learning. 

References

1. Hurschler Lichtsteiner, S., Wicki, W., & Falmann, P. (2018). Impact of handwriting training on fluency, spelling and text quality among third graders. Reading and writing, 31(6), 1295-1318.
2. P.K.A. (2018). Study on Class Characteristics of Handwriting Based on Emotions. Study on Class Characteristics of Handwriting Based on Emotions.
3. Bara, F., & Gentaz, E. (2011). Haptics in teaching handwriting: The role of perceptual and visuo-motor skills. Human movement science, 30(4), 745-759.
4. Armitage, D., & Ratzlaff, H. (1985). The non-correlation of printing and writing skills. The Journal of Educational Research, 78(3), 174-177.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 8 Surprising Facts About Good And Bad Handwriting appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Our list of edges and catches not only gives a clear picture of cursive handwriting but also can act as a guide for you in learning cursive handwriting. Transverse through the post to understand both sides of the coin diligently. 

Understanding the essence of cursive handwriting 

Cursive handwriting is a style of writing where letters are joined together to make writing faster. What makes it preferable is that it reduces the number of pen lifts compared to block scripts. 

Penmanship was evident right from Sumerian civilizations, but there were no specific guidelines to make the script neat and organized. It was in the 1600s that a standardized format was developed, which ensured it was neat, smooth, and understandable. While it was called Roundhead, this style is still one of the commonly used cursive styles today. 

Later multiple upgrades brought many more sub-styles under the style. Today, there is a set of definitive regulations to write cursive, giving it a certain boundary to ensure attributes in all scripts. 

Cursive handwriting- Adorned with style!

One of the most important and basic traits of good handwriting is the appropriate presentation of letters and words. Cursive style can ensure this by blending organization and style. Here are a few edges of opting for cursive style in handwriting: 

1. Gives a Cosmetic upgrade to the manuscript

When a writer is ready to put words on paper, they have multiple options like print and cursive. Choosing cursive can add style and flavor to the monotonous text. For this reason, this cursive is preferred in adorning cards and banners. This implies Cursive handwriting can be a simplistic alternative to complex calligraphy.  

2. Better perception and Motor Control

Holding the pen/pencil in a righteous way and tracing text needs a better perception of words and language along with good hand motor skills. When children start learning and writing cursive handwriting, the complexity of curves can let them address these attributes. 

3. Multisensory training in the language

Cursive handwriting stipulates disciplined and wavy hand movements while recognizing letters. All of these can impact in providing better multisensory training to children in learning the basics of language. Moreover, the speed of learning can be enhanced by this style of writing. This is because the script is formatted in a way in which the writer has to lift the pen or pencil less frequently. This helps writers understand language in a multisensory manner.

4.. Activates the Right- hemisphere of the Brain

Writing and comprehending text in cursive handwriting needs special abilities. Traversing through cursive text can improve attention, cognition, and visual processing. These inferences are outlined in research^[1] conducted by Joseph B. Hellige. In this study, Joseph and the team studied which part of the brain contributes more towards processing handwritten cursive. English native speakers were asked to read a cursive consonant-vowel-consonant presentation. It is found that the right hemisphere has a major role in processing. 

The right hemisphere is responsible for better attention, cognition, and visual processing; the above inferences point out that cursive handwriting can activate the right hemisphere. 

5. Assists Learning-disabled aspirants 

Most of the learning disabled have challenges inferring text and connecting them with sounds and spellings; cursive handwriting can help them decode the process.  According to the International Dyslexia Association^[2], cursive style can help Dyslexic students in better hand-eye coordination and other memory functions. 

Cons of cursive handwriting- Diving into the catch

The cursive style has large set edges, but there are distinct corners that may not go in favor of all the writers. Digging deep into these traits is important to identify if any of these can be a constraint for a writer to opt for this style. 

1. It may not suit the formal application

Cursive handwriting is a groovy option to upscale the visual stance of text. But, these often don’t look formal. This style can be a good option to write on the cards, or for signatures, but when it comes to writing formal content like letters to school administration, students may need to look into print options.  

2. Print style is to be learned anyway

In today’s scenario, where students traverse through both online and offline resources, they are obligated to understand and learn the print style of language. Accordingly, cursive often can account for an added style- the choice of which can get subjective for students. Also, to learn typing, cursive may not be helpful. 

3. May need additional Efforts to learn

Manuscript and cursive are distinct styles of presenting data. Students need diverging efforts to learn both. Doreen Armitage^[3] did research to observe if there is a relation between manuscript and cursive writing. The tests compared the abilities of third-grade students by their performance in print and cursive handwriting. Evidently, this means that students with print styles should put in effort to learn cursive separately. 

4. Needs time to present data

Cursive handwriting is more about maintaining a proper flow of writing and obligates a smooth transition from one letter to another. Ensuring this can take more time. On the other hand, print scripts or keyboarding can be not only faster but also offers provisions to modify. Accordingly, cursive can take time for the presentation. 

5. Writing benefits can be availed without Cursive

Cursive handwriting is one of the well-liked handwritten fonts, but it is not a standard anywhere. Any task of writing can be fulfilled with or without knowledge of cursive style. These insights can impact the need to learn it. 

Concluding insights…

Even today, the cursive style of writing is well-liked and preferred by many students and teachers. Nonetheless, the growing importance of print style can make it obsolete. With that idea, it becomes subjective for an individual to choose a cursive style of writing. If you are looking to learn or opt for cursive writing, ensure to traverse through the list of pros and cons to arrive at a better and befitting decision. 

References

1. Hellige, J. B., & Adamson, M. M. (2007). Hemispheric differences in processing handwritten cursive. Brain and Language, 102(3), 215-227.
2. How cursive can help students with dyslexia connect the dots. (2014, May 6). PBS NewsHour. https://www.pbs.org/newshour/education/connecting-dots-role-cursive-dyslexia-therapy
3. Armitage, D., & Ratzlaff, H. (1985). The non-correlation of printing and writing skills. The Journal of Educational Research, 78(3), 174-177.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post Pros & Cons of Cursive Handwriting appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Accordingly, this article aims to highlight a few hacks that can help improve the handwriting of an individual along with tips and tricks to maintain dexterity as well.  Going through these insights and employing them, you can try and become better at carving your words on paper. 

Handwriting and its components

A journal by Fancher^[1] in 2018 studied the behavior and result of handwriting practice in Pre-K students and found that handwriting is not only important but also assists in the improvement of motor learning theory and cognitive learning strategies. 

This is indicative of the fact that even though handwriting is a learned skill, it is not a consequence of normal development. It requires extensive practice over the various components that make the process of handwriting a skill-based process instead of innate behavior. These components can be conclusive of various issues we might end up facing in handwriting, but can be improved through the following insights:

1. Memory

It refers to the process of remembering and producing quick and automatic recall of numbers and letters. If an individual is unable to retain the formation of these components, the handwriting of the individual is bound to be affected by that.  

2. Orientation

It refers to the understanding of the direction of the letters and numbers being written. Error in this component of handwriting can cause spelling mistakes and reduce the legibility of the content. It can also cause distraction and inconsistency in the written content. 

3. Placement

It refers to how and where the numbers and letters are being placed on the baseline and defines the legibility of the content. 

4. Size

It refers to the size of the numbers or the letters being written. The movement of the wrist and fingers directs the size of the content. It is imperative to use age-appropriate papers to make sure that children of younger age groups have guided spaces for them to learn the size of the letters and numbers used frequently. 

5. Control

It refers to the neatness and proportion of the writing. One of the most common issues associated with matters of control is the “pencil” or “pen” grip.  Problems with control aren’t majorly caused directly, but because of adaptation of poor habits. 

Effective handwriting hacks 

The acquired skill of handwriting does involve a lot of cognitive and motor aspects it, however a few hacks that can never go wrong, and in fact, improve or develop certain  habits around it would involve: 

1. Break down the components 

One of the best hacks to improve your handwriting is to divide a letter formation into its components, which can be done by separating every curve. This allows for improvement in the formation of basic strokes of these letters and hence improves handwriting over time. The links below can be used to refer to the technique being discussed here. 

2. Spacing 

This hack requires the use of a ladyfinger or a bean and produces maximum results only after you have a hold over the consistency of your hand movements. Here, after every word, use the bean to create space before writing the next word, and practice like this for at least two to three sheets of a notebook or a diary. This will help bring consistency in the word spacing and make the handwriting clearer and easier to read. 

3. The ratio hack 

This hack is a rather geometrical hack and requires some practice as well. Here, the smallest letter has to be half the size of the line in which it is being written and the capital letter is double the size of the small letter. This allows the writing to look more consistent and readable, through the ratio of 2:1, where 2 stands for the size of the capital letters and 1  stands for the size of the small letters. 

4. Avoid Tangles 

When the long ascenders and descenders coincide with one another while writing in consequent lines, it makes the writing look more inconsistent, occupied, and unreadable. This can be done by either making the size of ascenders and descenders slightly smaller than usual or making more space between these lines. 

5. Connectors 

It is one of the most common errors that we make while using cursive handwriting. We tend to connect the letters of the word, using curved connectors, which can lead to confusion in the understanding of the actual shape of the letters, however, using straight connectors to join letters can help in easy differentiation between them, thus keeping the connections tidy. 

Simple tips and tricks for handwriting

Handwriting can be a reflection of an individual’s personality, it is important to keep on improving and evolving it. The following tips and tricks can help an individual improve and make sure that the progress they are making in handwriting is going in the right direction.

• Stretching your arms, hands, and fingers before you begin to write, can really help in improving the grip and in fact, prevent arm fatigue in case of extensive writing. 
• Try not to fix all the gaps in your handwriting at once, choose one issue, resolve it using the right tools, practice, and then move forward to the next issue. 
• Another tip in handwriting would be to focus on speed and clarity at the same time. It is important to make sure that the handwriting is readable all the while adhering to the time limit. We often end up focusing either on the speed of writing or the legibility of its understanding.
• Focus on the consistency of the font and the type of letter formation. If you begin to write in cursive make sure that the complete content is written in a cursive style with consistent heights of the letters and the gap between them.
• Doodle using your writing style. This would help in training hand-eye coordination and would improve an individual’s motor skills as well. It is also an extremely relaxing activity and acts as a component of the world of handwriting itself.
• Create a comfortable space for writing with minimal distractions and disruptions to the writing space.
• Analyze your handwriting in terms of its consistency of the formation of letters and the alignment, and seek help from teachers or guides in case of extensive confusion or inability.
• An individual can always print and practice on handwriting sheets to improve peer writing and aspects related to the formation and appearance of writing.

Conclusion

Even though we are living and progressing into an age that has been digitized, the simple act of writing by hand will never go out of style. It weaves the thoughts together and can be a reflection of various aspects of an individual’s life.

Keeping that in mind, the above list of hacks can help an individual improve their handwriting, their usefulness, and most importantly, why these hacks need to be implemented in our daily writing activities. You can use these tips, tricks, and hacks to make writing further smoother and reader-friendly.             

References:

1. Fancher, L. A., Priestley-Hopkins, D. A., & Jeffries, L. M. (2018). Handwriting acquisition and intervention: A systematic review. Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools, & Early Intervention, 11(4), 454-473.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 5 Effective Hacks For Improving Your Handwriting appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Reading through this post, you will be able to understand where writing skills can be eminent for these young adults. In this post, you can find out a list of activities that can be employed either as an icebreaker, brain-breaks, or an after-school practice of writing. 

How do writing activities help in the development of students?

Activities in general offer a real-time experience for the students to learn new concepts. When it comes to writing, specialized writing activities can assist schoolers on the following grounds:

• It encourages active learning and thinking. Activities can create real-time writing sessions for learners along with guidelines and teacher support. This way, they can use critical thinking to discern easy tips to apply later. All this motivates and encourages the learners gradually.
  
• Writing assists to learn new insights. Exploratory writing activities are used to explore concepts, ask questions, reflect on learning, and look for links between theory and practice. These tasks aim at polishing their writing and enhancing their skills. Exploring the depth of multiple concepts can bring about new insights to the adults, which may help academically too.
  
• Better writing abilities can make them explain better. In these activities, students are expected to take multiple roles to deliver intent in a clear and accessible manner. Such tactics can often result in fresh ideas and improved expertise. 

Fun activities to practice writing

1.    A Poetry Maker

In this activity, the students need to make a poem impromptu, with the help of the words given by the teacher. 

• The teacher starts by listing out a set of new words and writes them on chits and later puts them down in a box.
• Now each student in the class is asked to pick one chit.
• Pupils need to understand the word or refer to a dictionary to comprehend its meaning.
• Later, the mentor starts a timer of a particular time, within which learners need to write a poem based on the word they got. The time can be decided as per the level of the student, and the words are given. The length of the poem should also be kept in mind before setting the time limit. 
• After accomplishing this, the teacher evaluates the poems and gives appropriate feedback. 

This exercise has multiple edges apart from stipulating the youngsters to write. They learn new words every time and also discern how to write down a verse.

2.   Story Chains

Before starting the activity, students are divided into teams of 3. Each member of the team will write either an Intro, Body and Conclusion. These members would basically decide the introduction, body, and conclusion of the story. 

• To start with, The instructor writes a cue for a tale on the whiteboard. For example, nature and investigation.
• The team procures a piece of paper, and the first student (Intro) writes down the introduction of the story. This may include settings, character introduction, and other details. 
• Next, the second student (Body) takes the paper from Intro and writes the narration
• Later, the third student (Conclusion) gives a proper payoff to end the narration. 
• The teammates can sit and rearrange the story later to make it interesting. 

Writing as a solitary activity is adorned with teamwork here. This way, students get a chance to exchange insights and prepare a better piece of writing, ensuring a learning session. 

3.   Relationships with an Acrostic Form

Acrostics are simple poetry in which each letter of a word or phrase begins a new line in the poem. Younger adults can start by writing anything simple, like their name or a favorite pet, vertically down the page.

• Before beginning to write, students should jot down a particular word or phrase. This can be something they wish to talk about or something they have an interest in. 
• Next, the children can elaborate on the topic they have chosen for themselves. 
• The only catch would be to make it in the form of an Acrostic. 
• Basically, the first letter of every first word of the line should be such that they vertically make a word. 

For example: 

A piece of fruit.
Painted red or green.
Perfect for a snack.
Lovely with peanut butter.
Excellent in taste.

Here, if you notice, the letters in bold are A, P, P, L, and E, which make up APPLE; and that is the fruit being talked about!

4. The ‘ What if game‘

This activity focuses on asking the most basic question like ‘what if.’

• Begin by asking the children to think of a single What If question that they should write down on a piece of paper. 
• The more unusual, the better! ‘What if everyone on the planet knew exactly what you were thinking? ‘An example is  ‘What if your pet dog could talk?’ Students place their queries in a hat and toss them. Each student draws a question from a hat and writes about it for a set amount of time.

This assignment allows students to see the link between posing interesting hypothetical questions and generating pleasant writing.

5. Piece of motivation

Writing with a purpose is often exciting. In this activity, feedback is the central motive. 

• To start with, the teacher arranges a marker and a bunch of papers
• One student called upon an instructor and asked them to write a message for any person in the class. The pupil writing this message does not mention their name, but the recipient’s name is added. 
• The instructor fold this paper and puts it in a box
• The same cycle is repeated for all the students. 
• Once chits are ready, the mentor opens one after another to read the messages along with names. And gives a score for the style of writing for the ghostwriter. 

Through this activity, the writing is evaluated, and only the writer can know their score. Moreover, a motivating message is sent to a peer, encouraging them to perform better. 

6. Color with Words

A picture can be colored with paints, but using words for the same makes an interesting writing activity. 

• To start with, the teacher procures sheets of outline drawings. For instance, a hut and a moon form a simple scenery.
• After distributing one each to the students, the instructor asks them to fill these drawings with words describing them and assigns a time limit for the same
• The pupils need to brainstorm, choose the appropriate colors, and write about it in the space to fill it. For instance, if the object is the sun, the student can choose red or orange to describe it inside the picture thereby filling it up.

Once the child has successfully described each and every element of the picture, they now need to write the picture composition. For example, the picture has a hut, which is brown in color. The sun is shining bright and is peaking and gazing through the clouds. The children must remember to use good vocabulary and be as creative while writing as possible. 

7. Express With Words

This activity would be one in which the students have to read the expressions of their classmates, and based on that; they need to write a story. The story should be exactly as per the expressions of the student.

• Basically, the students would be divided into two teams – Team A and Team B.
• One member from Team A will enact an expression in front of Team B. It could be any, like happy, sad, frustrated, angry, excited – anything about which a story can be written.
• Next up, the entire Team B needs to guess the expression and write a story based on the expression. If the expression that the opponent members give was ‘angry,’ the story should portray anger, but not clearly say it by such lines like ‘Jack became angry.’ The plot should be such that it could convey anger.
• The word limit can be decided collectively.
• Later, the opponent team will read the stories, and whoever guesses it right wins and becomes the next person to give the expression.

This game is somewhat like dumb charades, but with expressions and words. This game allows students to understand emotions based on expressions. At the same time, this game encourages students to get involved in making an impromptu story and use their words wisely so that their team can guess the story.

8. Embed the Quotation

We see and hear quotes on a daily basis. These quotes now need to be explained along with real-life examples on paper by the students to boost their writing skills.

• The teacher first needs to give 5 quotes of their choice to the students.
• The students now need to pick one of them, brainstorm, and first understand what that quote or phrase means.
• Next up, they need first to write their meaning and then relate it with a real-life example.
• The teacher must guide the students to be as creative as possible.

In this activity, the teacher can set up a word limit of say, 200 words and 10 minutes which can make this activity more effective. This activity will not only help students understand specific quotes or phrases but also, they would now be able to relate them to real-life examples and situations. 

Summing Up

By now, we may infer that polishing writing skills with activities can be exciting and engaging.  The choices stated above are classroom-based activities. But, most of them can be employed at a personal level at home as well. Also, gaining expertise in writing can help children for better academic results as they can better present their answers on sheets effortlessly. Indulge in these activities; do not forget to mail us or comment down below if you have such a striking activity that we can include in this post for all your fellow readers!

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 8 Engaging Writing Activities For Middle School & High School appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

While some may write to present a view, others may write to adorn the scene. All of these skills can be easily worked upon with the help of some handwriting courses. These can guide the individual towards better fundamentals of writing and penmanship. 

Handwriting for adults: Never too late to learn?

Learning is a continuous process. Be it an adult or a child, learning multiple skills is important for personality development. While the skills to master may be the same, adults may look into some distinctive ways to learn. They may prefer to opt for those learning styles that may give quick results to apply. Also, they may like to self-learn subjects for better convenience. 

Identifying these crucial postulates, here we came up with a few insights to help adults in handwriting regularly.

• Handwriting often gives out the first impression of the writer. Thereby, even in simple writing tasks, one can take care to optimize their style making it an interesting training session.
•  Faster writing is often important. This not only saves time but also fluency of composition quality. With good handwriting, the individual can comprehend and highlight all the components of writing composition. 
• Note-making is an important habit even for adults. In class, the workplace, or any other location, ensuring good handwriting skills can make note-making easy.

Best courses for improving handwriting skills in adults

1.  Improve your Handwriting By the Postman’s Knock 

This is a comprehensive video-based online handwriting course for adults that comes with unique techniques to improve multiple writing styles. There are 27 videos included, as well as an 18-page worksheet with drills and examples to practice. TPK’s beginner package provides everything you need to get started with a pointed pen! Users can also pair this course with other courses on the site for better learning. 

Some other features of this course include instant and unlimited access to the content once enrolled, both right-hand and left-hand compatibility, and iPad support worksheet styles. For quick tips and instant learning, this course can be a good take-in. 

2.  Improve your Print and Cursive Handwriting and penmanship for Beginners At Skillshare

Created by Creative artist Tatiana Ambrose, this course focuses on improving handwriting to increase confidence in putting up the work officially. This Short course extended to a study time of three hours and nine minutes and encompassed a total of 36 different lessons. 

Starting from looking into the fundamentals of handwriting, the candidates gradually traverse into essentials for good penmanship, and then aspirants can learn tips and tricks for writing different cases, numbers, and symbols with ease and neatly. Aspirants can ensure better handwriting along with hand-eye coordination for the individual. 

3. How to Improve English Handwriting by ClassCentral 

Simple tips and tricks can make handwriting admirable. This free course from ClassCentral can be a good choice to discern various insights with just a click. With a list of 28 different lessons, this can be a complete beginner’s guide to developing their manuscript and cursive handwriting. 

Starting from teaching how to hold the pen appropriately, the training is accomplished to teach basic alphabets to learners, and then gradually expose them to words, sentences, and brush-up tips.  With a sequential approach, this can be a good choice for beginner learners. 

4. Improve your handwriting: Improve your life at Udemy

Entering the competitive world, adults need simple tips and tricks to smoothen their handwriting skills. The motto is often to look neat and formatted. This course by Monica Fortunato comes with an easily interpretable two-hour training video along with twenty-six resources to practice.

At the accomplishment of this course, along with certification, the learners can ensure fluidity and confidence in their handwriting. What makes it interesting is the suggestions of unique writing habits to practice and employ in real life later.

5. Learn to Write Cursive by Consistive Cursive

The handwriting of some adults may need a clear brush up to bring the beauty out of it. This beginner course can help individuals to bring beautiful cursive handwriting on paper. With around 32 lessons, projects, and exclusive content, this free course gives out detailed insights about each alphabet in each lesson, thereby ensuring a comprehensive session for the learners. 

Users can sign up to the site to avail of free training videos along with practice worksheets. If the person is able to hold a pen to write, they can avail of this course. Based on convenience, the user can complete these videos in a month or two-  implying the flexibility the course offers. 

Conclusion

Contrary to common opinion, “practice makes perfect,” in the case of handwriting if an individual is not expressly trained to change their handwriting habits, the practice they receive will not improve their handwriting – but will simply make their mistakes more permanent.

If you’re seeking high-quality explicit instructional resources to improve handwriting, we propose one of the ten courses we’ve compiled specifically for you. These courses can meet the requirements of learners at varying levels. 

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 5 Highly Recommended Handwriting Courses For Adults appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Handwriting — is the one attribute that is crucial to all humans. To learn the same, one can look into various strategies, books, and pedagogies to brush up on their special skills. Apart from this list,  special individuals may need to focus on their shortcomings related to writing. Along with hacks and activities, they also may need some assistive tools to make them compete with others. 

The handwriting tools that we have listed not only are easy to use but also add great value in improving the efficiency of writing. Traverse through the following lines to acknowledge all the insights about these tools to choose and apply now. 

Handwriting tool for the special- How does it help?

Handwriting tools are assistive aids for special children to make the learning of the same easier. These may either provide better grip and strength to hand or make writing easier in any other form. Here are a few insights that outline the importance of handwriting tools:

• These tools are designed to integrate with the writing flow of the special aspirants. By this, they can ensure independence in their writing tasks. 
• With handwriting tools, individuals can get closer to the competition by facilitating faster and more efficient output. 
• Special individuals can become reliable employees with a warranty on their tasks. 
• Apart from self-dependence, these tools offer relatively inexpensive and quick solutions for handwriting-related challenges. 
• Longcamp^[1] right marks that the ability to recognize shapes of letters and other attributes is ensured through handwriting. With assistive handwriting tools, individuals can ensure to grasp all of these effortlessly. 

Handwriting tools for assisting special needs individuals 

Handwriting tools must be picked according to the specific needs of the special child. Most of these tools work on the fine motor controls of the hand and wrist, which strengthen the way the child writes! Let’s have a look at some of the handwriting tools that have proved to be helpful.

1. Hand and wrist cover without weights

Sometimes, special individuals may need more power in their forearms to bring about better handwriting on paper. They can use hand and wrist covers to aid their condition.  This tool basically provides deep pressure input to the forearms of the student. This can improve the kinesthetic feedback and sensory awareness- thereby better writing. 

This tool is easy to carry and can be used in any place like a classroom, or in ant therapy sessions too, They are skin-friendly and water-resistant and come with quality elastic straps for long-lasting grip. 

2. Weighted gloves 

When the individual needs support in both wrists and ankles, they can look into using weighted gloves. These come with multiple support systems to aid fingers, ankles, and wrists- providing a better grip on the hand to write. 

This glove comes with a unique weight proposition that can assist motor activities and exercises related to handwriting. These come in varying sizes to fit various sizes of hands. These are often made of good quality to ensure durability.

3. Slant Writing slope

Some disabled may feel it arduous to write on a horizontal surface like a table. They can assist by elevating the plane to a comfortable degree. To ensure the same, a slanting writing slope can be used to give out a specific slant to the writing plane.

These tools come with varying options to slant. This means that the users can change the orientation if needed.  They are durable and are collapsible to easily store and carry into places. They are handy and can be an alternative to ordinary writing boards 

4. Writing Grips

Most pens and pencils come in a specific size and width. Some special students may face problems getting a grip on the thin tool. To assist this, writing grips can be placed on them to add to the breadth. This way, the individual can better hold the pen/pencil to write better. 

They are made of safe materials and can be used by toddlers as well. These often come in different sizes, from which the user can choose one.  Also, these tools answer chronic hand pain issues. 

5. Graph paper

Graph paper is often an unnoticed assertive tool for handwriting. While graph sheets are often used to draw statistics and other graphs on paper, they can be helpful for better handwriting tools. These come with grids of varying sizes, which the special children can abide by while writing. This way,  they can gradually learn to write proportionate letters, numbers, and symbols. 

Students can either procure graph sheets, or books to proactive their handwriting. Later they can shift to other sheets to learn proportional handwriting. The users can also make use of rulers to organize things better. 

6. Pencil/pen  Holder

Some individuals may face problems holding the pen/pencil in the right direction while writing. Holders can be used to keep them in place at a predetermined angle. Basically, these are wrist banks with an extension to place a pencil/Pen in it. On the other side, there is a string that the writer holds for writing. 

People can learn writing with a better grip on pencils with proper implementation. It comes with trendy color and light right- making it easy to carry and use anywhere. Also, this can be used for longer durations, as it is made of smooth cotton Knit material. 

7. Chewy Tops For Pencils

Some special students may have a habit of chewing pencils while they think of writing something.  It is an unhealthy habit. As a solution for the same, the caretakers can use chewy tops for pencils. 

These tools are prism-shaped soft chewable caps that can be fitted to the back of the pencil. 

Next time, if the student wants to chew, they can act on these caps instead. What makes them preferable is that they are safe for children. These chewy tops are free from harmful latex and are a reliable product.

Features of these handwriting tools

Logically, handwriting tools are made to assist individuals with their challenges. To add convenience to the users, here are a few noteworthy features that our suggested tools offer:

• Create a scope for better writing practice. These tools when appropriately chosen can assist in better handwriting. Be it in any form, they not only add to the comfort but also create better scenarios to write.  For instance, Slanted writing slopes can elevate the paper for easy writing. 
• They are made of safe materials. All of our handwriting tools are made of safer materials. This means that they can be reliable for use by young students too.  Say, Chevy pencil in our suggestions is latex-free therapy is safe. 
• These tools are often durable. The choices that we have provided here are meant to be used for longer durations and thereby are often made durable. With appropriate use and maintenance, they can last decently long. 
• Easy to carry wearables. Most handwriting tools are convenient to use. When it comes to wearables, they are easy to put on remove and can be placed in bags after use 
• Can be used anywhere. These tools are often decent in their looks and thereby special individuals can use them almost anywhere. Also, they offer the next level of confidence to start.

Concluding thoughts…

For any special person with handwriting issues, assertive tools can come in handy. The underlying motto is to improve the grip of the person on the pen/pencil or to create a scope for better writing. All the above picks adhere to these postulates and can prove to work almost instantaneously when appropriately employed. Traverse through the above picks and see which of these can be a suitable solution for you. 

References:

1. Longcamp, M., Zerbato-Poudou, M. T., & Velay, J. L. (2005). The influence of writing practice on letter recognition in preschool children: A comparison between handwriting and typing. Acta psychologica, 119(1), 67-79

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 7 Helpful Handwriting Tools For Special Needs Students appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Stepping out of regular practices and indulging in something interesting can diversify the platform to practice handwriting and improve motor skills. Consider the below-listed activities along with resources like apps, games, and worksheets to make handwriting entertaining. Towards the end of the post, you’ll find a bonus that we’ve added to help your kids practice writing and get better at it.

Importance of good handwriting

Good handwriting is pleasant to the eyes and feels satisfying for the reader, accordingly, it can be perceived as one of the effective communication skills. Writing puts the thoughts in a simple and raw format where the reader can sense the aura behind them. Coming out of these insights,  here are a few other  benefits of Good handwriting:

• It becomes a more holistic activity when you engage the body to write by hand.
• Learning to write the alphabet by interacting with each letter helps students imprint and retain the letters and the letter sounds for easier recall when learning to read.
• Handwriting helps us slow down and engage completely with our thoughts. Writing by hand gives you time to think before penning down your ideas or story. 
• A piece of handwriting can reflect multiple attributes of a person’s personality. Not only the appearance but an impactful statement can make a difference in the readers. 
• Ideally, good handwriting is adorned with gentle flow and rhythm. Good handwriting can be equally soothing and serene for the writer.

Some activities to improve your handwriting skills

1. Color Pencils Fun

For a good piece of handwriting, the writer should have a good grip on the pencil and also the right proportions of the letters they are writing up. This activity addresses both these areas with an added engagement.  To start, all the student needs to have colored pencils and a sheet of paper. The color pencils are to make it visually attractive, they can otherwise use any other pen or pencil. 

• The teacher draws a small circle (say with a radius of 6 mm) and a few other shapes like a slanting vowel and a straight line on the paper. These are the basic strokes for a good writing
• The child looks at the shapes for some time and tries to trace them with different colored pencils one after another. 
• Now, the learner is encouraged to write these shapes below with different colors. An iteration of 12 times each with one color is suggested. 
• Once this activity is completed, the teacher evaluates and gives feedback to each student. 

This activity addresses the fundamentals of good writing by letting the learners learn basic curves and strokes.

2. Chalkboard Writing

This activity is important for the kid to write on a vertical surface like a whiteboard. Things you’ll need to perform the activity are board and chalk.

• On one side of the board, the teacher draws a few parallel lines to make it look like tiled notebook paper. 
• A child is called upon, and the instructor dictates lines which the little need to write neatly in between these lines
• Now, the instructor draws smaller lines (with lesser space) on the other side of the board.
• The little ones write the same lines in smaller sizes to fit in the new lines. 

This process can be repeated any number of times by reducing the size further. Also, it can also be practiced in a notebook too. The edge of this activity is that the child learns to write the alphabet in a disciplined and organized manner even in smaller spades. 

3. DIY Cardboard Clipboard

Materials Required for doing this activity are Cardboard, Needle, a pencil, and Paper Clips.

• To start, the teacher procures a plain sheet of cardboard and with a needle strikes some letters, or words on it. This way, the cardboard has dents with letters on it. 
• Now, the student receives the board, takes paper and paper clips, and attaches them to the cardboard. This way, they can write on the paper.
• The learner traces the words on the cardboard to the paper by aligning their pencil with the dents. 
• Once this process is completed, they can remove the paper and write the same letter without tracing. 

This activity is simple to do, where students can get a DIY platform to trace and learn multiple words and letters. This can be employed for all ages varying the complexity of the test.

4. Cursive Writing on Different Sheets

For this activity, you need some pencils, a cursive worksheet, a ruled notebook & plain sheet.

• Make a group of five learners and make them ready for the activity with all entities needed. 
• Ask them to use the cursive writing workbook for writing. 
• Once they have written in the worksheet, ask them to write the same sentences or words in their normal notebook. 
• Now notice the strokes where the children cannot draw the letters properly on the ruled paper. 
• Help them out to write the same letters correctly. Once you feel that the children are writing the strokes correctly, shift their writing practice to plain paper. 
• Ask them to write the same material on a plain white sheet. Watch out if they are writing the words or sentences correctly in a linear alignment.  Help them to write linearly by drawing lines on a plain sheet. 

This activity will help students practice letters and words and write linearly without bumping into other lines.

5. Slanting Hands

Keeping the book and hand at a certain angle can make the writer comfortable. This activity lets the students determine their most comfortable position of writing. All the student needs for the activity is a notebook and pencil.

• To start with, the teacher writes a sentence or a few lines on the board
• They determine a few angles and healthy postures for children to write
• Now, the students are and sit on the floor with a notebook on their laps. 
• First, they are made to sit with a lap parallel to the floor. And they write the lines on the board in the notebook.
• Later, they are asked to list their laps to make an angle with the floor and rewrite the sentence, Similarly, all the other postures are implemented
• Now, the instructor evaluates each iteration to determine the best position for the child. With these guidelines, the learner can here find the best angle for writing. 

Even though the children can use adaptive tools like angular writers, this activity determines what angle is appropriate for the little one. 

6. Feedback Time

Students can have multiple opinions about their teachers, peers, and parents. Letting them put these on paper not only makes an appreciable activity but can also increase the bonds between them. 

• To start with, the teacher creates a bunch of paper strips
• Each student is given a strip of paper and a colored pen
• Now, they need to write a line about one of their peers along with their names. This can be a thank you message, an opinion, and just an extended hand for friendship.
• These strips are submitted to the teacher. 
• The instructor opens each strip reads it out and then evaluates it based on the handwriting and vocabulary used. 

This activity can be a simple icebreaker or after-school activity to make sure to expose students to newer horizons of handwriting practice.

7. Write The Big

Not only writing on paper but writing big letters can make the children better understand the curves and details of each letter while writing. We will focus on the same in this activity. The student needs paint, a brush, and a piece of cardboard. 

• To start, each student gets one cardboard and hangs them on the wall in a row. 
• The teacher gives them a list of quotes, which each student can select from.
• The learner writes the quote they got with paint on the cardboard. 
• Teachers can help the student to make curves better and teach newer techniques

Once the activity is complete, the teacher evaluates all the boards and announces the best three of them. This activity lets the students do big with letters and also learn how to make letters for banners and projects later.

8. Carving Fun

This activity gives out an engaging way of communication for students. Students need a chalk piece and a used pen.

• To start with, students decide whom they will give the chalk piece to and then decide the word to write on it. For instance, they can choose to write “Friends Forever” to give it to a friend. 
• They start writing the words on the chalk piece and adorn it better with better grooves and shapes of letters. 
• Once the writing is done, the teacher calls the students one by one. Each student should hold that chalk piece, write the same word on the board and explain “Why” and “To Whom” of it.
• Later the teacher evaluates all chalk pieces and gives feedback to the students to improve.

Writing on a chalk piece gives a fresh feel to the writing activity. Also, the students can bring about their talent to uniquely design them by changing fonts and decorating them too. 

Printable Comprehensive Cursive HandWriting Book PDF

In addition to the above activities, we’ve designed this comprehensive cursive handwriting book for kids. This workbook contains 120 worksheets, providing ample practice for each cursive letter.

Each worksheet is structured to help students efficiently practice and master cursive letters. The systematic approach ensures that learners can gradually build their skills, starting from individual letters and progressing to connecting letters and forming words.

The workbook’s clear and straightforward design makes it easy for students to follow along and practice at their own pace. This makes it suitable for a wide range of learners, from beginners to those looking to refine their cursive handwriting. So, take the first step, download the workbook as it offers a thorough and effective way to achieve proficiency in cursive handwriting.

Conclusion

Handwriting is undoubtedly an important trait that should be learned as youngsters. Practices from lectures, exams, and homework are evidently helpful. But to polish up this ability with better presentation skills, the role of activities may be inevitable. To learn and engage the little learners better, check out the above handwriting activities that can also be a good pastime to ensure upskilling. See if any of these can opt for your little ones even with minor changes.

Simran Aggarwal

The post 8 Fun Handwriting Activities For Kids appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

The advantage of online handwriting practice is that the pupils can get varying options for free. Also, the fonts are customisable and often don’t need paper to practice. Here we listed out a few websites you can try right away to ensure online handwriting practice.

Can online websites help?

Multiple options like handwriting notebooks and stencils have been effective in giving out a disciplined practice to little ones. Therefore, the need for websites for the same can be a question for some, Can they help?

The answer is a big fat yes! These websites provide you with a range of services, from learning how to trace the letter to familiarize yourself with the alphabet, then moving a step forward with small words, small sentences, and then at the end with multiple sentences. Most of the sites also allow you to customize handwriting worksheets. All of these pointers quite smoothly help us in concluding that using online websites to improve one’s handwriting is a great idea.

Websites to practice your handwriting skills

1. Gynzy

This website provides an online whiteboard through which students are able to practice their writing. It also has a content library that has numerous pre-made and specialized lessons that will help kids improve their handwriting. It allows you to practice print writing as well as Cursive writing. 

Having a couple of options for writing can be a positive sign to improve fundamental skills. The fonts: D’Nealian and Zaner-Bloser fonts can be effective for children.

2. HandWriting Worksheets

Focused on improving the writing skills of children, this site offers worksheets to practice. These sheets come in varying formats and complexity levels. Users can download, and use these sheets anytime in school or at home. 

Users can choose among three writing styles: print, D’Nealian, and Cursive styles. An added edge is that the individual also has the provision to customize their worksheet- making it user-friendly.

3. Worksheet Works

This is a service that allows you to make and print your worksheets. The site teaches and guides learners with a set of worksheets. These can be either customized or can be downloaded for practice later. 

The customizing options here include changes in text size, lines, style, and many more. This implies that the user can get a set of fonts to practice. The process of customizing is also effortless, one can easily slide the bar to change sizes and choose from predetermined options provided.  

4. Letter Trace by abcya.com

Abcya site comes with a gaming lesson for children to learn alphabets, and shapes by letting them trace on the screen. Opening the page, users can see options to choose from to trace: Capital, Lowercase, or numbers. Later they can choose a type of music to play as background music As the training starts, the students are asked to draw a curve or line one after another to finish an alphabet. Background music plays when the user is appropriately drawing the letter. This site can be preferable for young learners as it ensures multisensory learning.

5. Donna Young

This site comes with a unique approach by first explaining the basics of writing and then diving into various activities. Starting with styles, it has separate activities for three different manuscripts. Later, it comes with detailed lessons and worksheets for different related attributes like color rules, gray lines, and card-themed worksheets.

The website also provides you with letter animations that can help you learn how to draw a letter perfectly. With this feature, one can learn the perfect strokes of each letter. 

6. ESL Writing Wizard

Acting as a support for homeschooling parents and also teachers, it comes up with multiple types and complexities of practice. Starting from simple alphabets, it can vary up to multi-word worksheets. With this mix, the site can be chosen for multiple age groups. 

Also, this site assures to support ESL students to master their handwriting skills with easy assignments and worksheets. An added advantage is that users can also avail free workbooks to practice after school.

7. Sky Writer by ICT games

The fundamental part of writing letters and symbols is to understand the curves and shapes.  To teach these tips to young children, this site comes with an interesting animated lesson. For every alphabet, an airplane with smoke goes in a particular shape to form a letter, observing which the student can write alphabets themselves.  

Opening the page, the user can see all the alphabet on each button on the top of the screen. Below that there are options to change the sky color and choose a cursive style. The student can press/click on any of the alphabets, to see how it is written. Also, there are three colors- red, white, and blue smokes to choose from.

8.  Handwriting Worksheet For Print Practice

This site can be a good friend for teachers by helping them to create timely handwriting assignments. It let users make minor changes and customize worksheets for free. The edge here is that the site not only allows alphabets, it also encompasses special symbols, signs, and other language parameters. 

With this site, the users can create sheets in both portrait and landscape modes. Also, they can fabricate flashcards with bigger fonts. 

Winding up…

It is fair to comment that handwriting is one of the eminent and fundamental skills for an individual. Neat and impressive handwriting can instantly create a good impression on the reader. Also, it is important to neatly present the views on paper. With the advanced technology, handwriting practices can be availed online too. With these sources, one can practice in the comfort of their phones and laptops too. Check out the sites stated above and see which of them is the best fit for your child to relish.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post Top 8 Websites To Practice Handwriting Online appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

Good handwriting by a child can create a better impression for the teacher and other readers. While many classroom activities and strategies can be employed to address writing, a choice of handwriting books can have an added set of advantages like definitive and personalized practice. 

Maintaining a proper handwriting book is thereby important, but is ambiguous to decide due to a number of options being available in the market today. We here came with a list of handwriting books with varying styles and ages to make your expedition for books easier.

How can handwriting books help?

Writing is an effective mode of communication. It not only assists in addressing tasks like assignments later but also helps in the development of motor skills. Handwriting books can create a platform and extended scope to practice these abilities better. Here are some reasons why a child should opt for a handwriting book.  

• These replace the need for separate notebooks for practicing
•  Handwriting Books can give visual cues and examples of common patterns and how to write them. This information is available in documented form, assisting young learners with iterative learning.
• An ideal handwriting book comes with some handwriting activities too. These provide a personalized scope for engaging learning, also proving to be a good pastime for learners after school. 
• Having a handwriting book in hand, a student or the mentor can set a target to finish each page or activity in a determined time span. This can enhance the discipline in the little one. 
• These books can be used to address specific needs of the child’s writing like size, alignment, shapes, and proportions.

How to choose the right handwriting book?

With multiple handwriting book choices available in the market, choosing the right one is a bit time-consuming. Here let us look into the major factors that would make the handwriting book stand out and really help you in teaching handwriting.

1. Firstly, practicing handwriting should not seem like a chore. The book should have practicing instructions written in a fun way.
2. The books should include engaging activities and games – addressing the motor skills of hands.
3. The lines in the books for children should be dotted- with the top line having a thick difference making it easy for the kid to write in the confined area.
4. For practice, a lot of pages can be considered with dotted lines and dotted alphabets so that the child can practice often.
5. A step-by-step instruction should be included which makes it easy for the kid to follow and it allows the child to learn independently.
6. The handwriting books should follow a sequential approach of making the students learn writing. Starting with letters and words, the activities should later switch to writing sentences.
7. While learning the letters is important, it is equally important that the handwriting book also differentiates between a capital letter and a lowercase letter.
8. The information that the student practices should add value to their learning. For instance, while they are practicing writing words, the book may use different colors of the rainbow. This way, there can be multiple advantages of the session.

Best handwriting books- Our recommendations for little writers

The above-stated points help you check out if you are looking for a good handwriting book and to make sure you picked the right one from the bookstore aisle or the one that you saw last week online. Find below some of our finds that are available online and cater to the skills of the handwriting of children.

1. Trace Letters- Alphabet Handwriting Practice Workbook

The workbook is best suited for youngsters from three to five years of age. It comes with step-by-step instructions on how to trace an alphabet with its easy-to-dot tracing method. The book has 150 pages and that leaves the child with enough scope for practice and at the same time does not tire the child.

This workbook is organized in a skill-building way to boost the kid’s confidence to write neatly and legibly. While it is focused for kindergarteners, other learners can also use it based on their learning levels.

2. Carson Dellosa Complete Book of Handwriting Workbook for Kids 

The book helps the child in practicing regular manuscript and cursive writing. Areas covered in this book include numbers, seasons, holidays, arts, math words, and many more which offer scope for multiple approaches for better comprehension, presentation, and learning. 

The book is suitable for five to nine years of age. Starting with numbers and simple words, this book creates a scope to start from concrete concepts of writing. Later, the little ones can gain knowledge about sight concepts mentioned above effortlessly while they practice writing.

3. The Print Penmanship Workbook for Kids By Crystal Radke

To ensure engagement, this book introduces various kinds of animals with colorful illustrations and gives a chance for the children to practice writing the names of all the animals. The book also includes some special pages where the students are encouraged to color while they practice. This way learners can relish sessions better. 

The book is suitable for six to nine years of age. With colorful illustrations and fun facts about mammals, fish, reptiles, birds, and bugs, each writing lesson feels like a romp through the animal kingdom.

4. 200 Essential Sight Words for Kids Learning to Write and Read 

The book is ideal for kids above five years of age as it not only introduces new words in a creative way but also shows the vocabulary used frequently. The added advantage is that most of the words used here are sight words, making the learner familiar with these as a part of the practice.

As this book comes with a combination of reading and writing sessions, it may need the assistance of the teacher or the parent.  What makes it easy to opt for is its sequential approach to introducing these words.

5. Handwriting Practice for Kids Book 2

This book comes with a homesteading theme. This means that the context of the book is woven around home-based objects and entities- which can easily prove to be engaging facts for the little one. Adhering to the stepwise approach, students can here start with words and then shift to sentences. 

Each sentence in this book is related somehow to home-based activities like gardening and animals and other activities. This way, by reading it out while practicing, the little ones may learn new insights and also retain motivation for longer durations. It caters to all types of families, irrespective of gender, thereby assuring all-around development in the home too.

6. My First Learn-to-Write Workbook

Communication skills are important for every child, and having good handwriting is an important aspect of it. My first learn-to-write is a short and complete workbook for students of ages 3 to 5. It comes with varying practice exercises like proper pen controlling, line tracing, and other boosting approaches. 

It comes with a length of 75 pages that are properly equipped with exercises. With this book, Crystal Radke, the author claims to be comprehensive training for little ones to gradually develop reading and penmanship thereby addressing their motor skills.

7. My First Handwriting Book By Heather Cross

While most handwriting books create scope for cursive writing, this book focuses on manuscripts. To keep it simple and effective, it comes with serene practice pages with visual cues and engaging color themes.

Being distraction-free and straightforward, this can be a good choice for in-class practice and also for homeschooling children. The exercises in this book are developmentally appropriate for young learners.

8. Handwriting Practice: Complete A-Z Lettering Sheets

Preschoolers focus on appropriately learning alphabets and cases. This simple book can be a good choice for them as it comes with practice in multiple styles. Also, as it comes with a sequential approach, students can grab the techniques easily. 

Each page has a heading of one alphabet in both the cases and the learner gets the rest of the page to practice them. To make the session engaging some visual cues are also provided at the top of each page. For instance, the C practice page has Car and Cat images.

9. Magic Ink Copybooks for Kids

This handwriting book can stand out in the list because of some unique features like reusability and special support for the learners. Each page of this book comes with dents to practice. This way, they act as stencils for the learners. The book also includes a magic pen. Practicing with this pen, the letter erases automatically after 30 minutes, making the workbook reusable again. 

The book encompassed not only English letters and words, but also math numbers and operations. The quality is kid-friendly and durable. Also, to assist special children, this book also comes with a free silicon grip that works as a writing tool to write better.

Evaluating these books..

Handwriting books have a central motto to enhance the writing skills of children. But implicitly, they can also teach other concepts in this journey. With the set of options we suggested, we hope your efforts in choosing one can get easier. Check out the list of books to comprehend how each of these is unique and handy. Also, It is important to note that the guidance of the teacher or parent is equally important for the young ones to be disciplined in the practice sessions and learn effectively. 

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post 9 Awesome Handwriting Books For Kids appeared first on Number Dyslexia.

The handwriting requirement for grown-ups may be different from kids. Adults often need good penmanship to look professional in written communication and also to make a lasting impression on readers.  For this reason, some adults may feel like improving their handwriting to make their presentation skills better. Fortunately, handwriting resources like books are available for adults too. 

While apps may be handy to learn new tips and tricks, handwriting books assist to practice in real life. The choices provided in this article give out good practice sessions for neat handwriting and also ease your book decision.

Factors to consider while choosing a handwriting book 

Handwriting books can be opted by people of varying age groups. Now, if adults are looking for an appropriate handwriting book, there are some unique factors that they can consider:

• Is the workbook informative? Adults often like books that offer multiple benefits. Handwriting books that are creative and offer additional value can be preferred. For example, a writing practice book in our suggestions gives out various science-related insights as they practice. 
• Should not be too comprehensive. Most adults often know what the fundamentals of handwriting are. Accordingly, these books should have shorter word-based practice and longer sentence-based practice exercises. 
• Books covering multiple styles can be preferable. As adults have better-grasping abilities they can learn two styles one after another or together. So, an individual can choose a book with multiple styles like cursive and manuscript.
• Carriable size is important. Adults may like to carry these workbooks to places like the office to facilitate unhampered practice. To facilitate them, the books should be of the proper shape to get hold of and be fairly weighing. Also, these should easily fit in bags and briefcases. 
• Handwriting books for adults should facilitate self-practice. As most adults like learning at their comfort time schedules, books that ensure complete guidelines are preferable. This way, each and every step of the learners get on the right path. 

Books for improving handwriting skills in adults

1. The Lost Art of Handwriting Workbook

Pages of beautifully-designed letters, sayings, and phrases may be used to perfect your handwriting in The Lost Art of Handwriting. This workbook comes as a mix of directions, words, and also lines of text. This makes sure that learning is a sequential event for adults.

As the individual practices with this workbook, they can implicitly make them learn the proportions of good handwriting. Addressing the same, the maker claims it will be helpful later in writing cards, artworks, and many other areas too. Breaking down the book into small snippets of exercises, one can employ this book for daily practice.

2. Cursive Handwriting Workbook for Adults

This is a short and effective workbook that comes with around 110 pages. Right from the first page, it makes sure the practice is fitting for adults- by keeping these in certain standards. This implies that words and phrases of daily use along with some peculiar options are also available. Other crucial features of this book include the detailed exercises of fundamentals of handwriting like Forming, joining, and writing letters thereby building solid mastery of sentences. 

The book is broken into four sections. It begins with each letter, then moves on to letter combinations, with lots of room for practice on each page. Later, there’s a chapter on writing words, followed by a chapter on rehearsing phrases. This book makes the complete handwriting journey smoother.

3. Cursive handwriting workbook for Adults By hipidoo

This book develops an awareness of how to appropriately construct and link each cursive letter. The learner can start with bigger letters to get a better knowledge of letter shapes and curves. Later they are gradually taken to smaller letters. There are plenty of inspiring affirmations and quotations to trace and practice, and continuing the same can help in bringing about beautiful handwriting. This book is chock-full of helpful hints, specific hand motions, and styles for everyone.

The learner starts their journey by tracing cursive letters. Later, they learn how to connect multiple words. They also learn to write numbers, words, and affirmations-thereby completing the basics of handwriting.

4. Print and Cursive Handwriting Workbook

This book can be treated as a complete beginner book for adults as it teaches how to handle words with care while writing on paper. This book is one of the few choices that marks the importance of writing in the world of emails. 

Covering print and cursive handwriting styles, the learners are guided with clear instructions making their journey easy. This book points out three areas where it can be helpful: making the learner practically ready for writing, getting a step above in writing, and also creating scope to check for weaknesses and address them.

5. Print Handwriting Workbook for Adults By Ellie Roberts

The unique factor about this book is that it covers words and phrases related to science topics like anatomy, astrology, and engineering. This way it adds a new flavor to the adult-centric handwriting book. Indulging in exercises will not only address handwriting but also enlighten the learner with relevant information about today’s world. Another factor that makes it adult-centric is the smaller font- which means the individual can have a broader scope of practice.

The theme of the book is simple and serene. Just like any other handwriting book, users can learn, trace it and then duplicate it. Since the text practice is done in print font, the users can be exposed to plain text formatting in handwriting in an engaging way.

6. Improve Your Handwriting

This book comes up with a set of on-paper activities that makes it a good choice for mature learners. The exercises and sheets ensure that the users can easily self-diagnose their defects and improve their handwriting.

The book delves into the history and philosophy of handwriting, as well as how it should be practical in terms of speed and readability. Standing out from other exercise books, it is somewhat creative. To help you personalize your writing, the book explains how strokes, letters, and connectors function so you may modify the design without losing your handwriting. These same concepts may be used to improve the ergonomics and readability of your present handwriting. 

7. How I imagine my Handwriting By Belly Ortiz

Improving handwriting is a need for most adults. For struggling writers, it is a must. What this book ensures is good handwriting in less time. With just 100 pages of exercise, it encompasses easy, and engaging sessions that make learners stick to the essence of handwriting practice. 

To make the learning organized, this workbook is divided into five parts. Starting from simple shapes of writing, to phrases of lines practice, the adult can traverse a journey of sequential learning. For daily exercise and short-term practice, this book can be a good choice. 

Conclusion

Handwriting skills can be learned at any age. With regular practice, these attributes get polished over time.  Overall, slow down, pay attention, and experiment with different handwriting styles, as well as different pen types and paper combinations, to discover the one that works best for you. These books can be employed effortlessly for daily practice. Ponder over the features of each book and see which of these are the best fit for you.

Manpreet Singh

An engineer, Maths expert, Online Tutor and animal rights activist. In more than 5+ years of my online teaching experience, I closely worked with many students struggling with dyscalculia and dyslexia. With the years passing, I learned that not much effort being put into the awareness of this learning disorder. Students with dyscalculia often misunderstood for having  just a simple math fear. This is still an underresearched and understudied subject. I am also the founder of Smartynote -‘The notepad app for dyslexia’, 

The post Top 7 Handwriting Books For Adults appeared first on Number Dyslexia.