“He just sits there and stares at the paper.”
“She cries when homework time starts.”
“My child avoids writing like the plague.”
If your child struggles with handwriting — and it leads to frustration, meltdowns, or refusal — you’re not alone. Many parents think this is a behaviour issue, but in fact, there’s often an underlying functional reason.
🧠 Why Is Handwriting So Hard?
Writing isn’t just about picking up a pencil. It requires:
- Postural control to sit upright
- Shoulder and hand strength
- Fine motor coordination
- Visual motor integration (seeing and copying shapes/letters)
- Sensory regulation to tolerate pencil pressure, noise, and fatigue
- Planning and sequencing of strokes and letters
If any of these systems are underdeveloped, handwriting becomes slow, effortful, and exhausting — sometimes even painful.
🚩 Common Red Flags
- Complains of hand pain or tiredness quickly
- Avoids colouring, drawing, or fine motor tasks
- Doesn’t use non-dominant hand to stabilise paper
- Uses whole arm to write, instead of wrist/finger control
- Can form letters, but writing is slow or poorly spaced
- Meltdowns when asked to do writing tasks
- Homework takes much longer than expected
📚 What the Research Says
A 2019 Australian study from the University of Sydney’s Faculty of Health Sciences found that:
“Children with poor fine motor and visual motor skills are at significantly higher risk of falling behind academically — especially in writing-based tasks.”
(Watson et al., 2019)
The study stressed the importance of early identification and OT intervention, as handwriting difficulties affect:
- Academic confidence
- Classroom participation
- Willingness to engage in school work
🧰 What Can Parents Do?
- Observe without pressure
Watch how your child holds the pencil, stabilises the paper, or tires out quickly. - Make fine motor play fun
Encourage games like Lego, playdough, threading beads, or scissors to strengthen hands. - Use adaptive tools
Try pencil grips, slant boards, or larger pencils for better control. - Break writing into short, manageable chunks
5-minute bursts may work better than 20-minute sessions. - Don’t wait — get an OT assessment
A professional can identify if the issue is muscle tone, motor planning, or sensory processing.
🧠 Therapist’s Insight
“I’ve seen children who were labelled as ‘lazy’ or ‘non-compliant’, but when we assessed their fine motor skills, it became clear — writing was simply too hard for their hands.”
✅ Final Thought
If your child resists writing, it’s not about willpower — it may be about ability.
By identifying the root cause and supporting their development, you help them feel successful and confident in the classroom.
📞 Worried about your child’s handwriting or fine motor skills?
SPOT Allied Health offers handwriting assessments and OT programs tailored for each child.
📖Ref:
Watson, C. E., Larkin, D., & Blanchard, M. (2019). Fine motor and visual motor integration skills as predictors of academic performance in early primary school-aged children. University of Sydney Faculty of Health Sciences.
