Dysgraphia Explained

Could it be a writing learning disability? Does your child have awful looking penmanship? Does she have an awkward looking pencil grip? How about difficulty putting thoughts onto paper?  One young child told me he felt like he was having writing wars with his hand.  A mom expressed her frustration when she explained her child’s writing was so slow and laborious that the writing process was painful for them both. These are classic dysgraphia warning signs.

Dysgraphia is a writing learning disability that affects 6-10% of kids.  Testing for dysgraphia is an easy process that most kids enjoy. We assess your child’s finger control as some children can’t control their finger movements.  This creates fine motor difficulty. A dysgraphia evaluation also assesses your child’s ability to copy from close or farther away.  We compared your child’s talking ability with his or her writing ability as most children with dysgraphia are stronger verbal communicators but don’t express themselves well in written form.

If your child has dysgraphia he or she might be eligible for classroom accommodations on a 504 Plan.  This is the public school document that recognizes your child has dysgraphia and prevents teachers from discriminating against your child’s writing. Some children need to use technology whether voice to text or keyboarding.  Other children need extra time on writing tests.  Some children need a special writing utensil such as the Pen Again which is a wishbone looking pencil that helps children correct an awkward pencil grasp.

Children with weak finger strength and control might need to participate in occupational therapy. An occupational therapist works on fine motor activities such as cutting, drawing, buttoning, and improving finger control.  Children with severe dysgraphia often qualify to receive occupational therapy at school.  A thorough dysgraphia evaluation pinpoints your child’s difficulty and provides the paperwork for obtaining school help.

We offer in office ADHD/ADD testing, school neuropsychological evaluations for dysgraphia and dyslexia, and gifted testing. Call (561) 625 4125.