Dysgraphia

16 Jan Dysgraphia

What is Dysgraphia?

Dysgraphia is a learning disability that results in difficulty with written expression. Children with dysgraphia are able to express themselves fluently orally, but when they are asked to express it in writing form.

A child’s writing might include language problems such as omitting words, and incorrect word usage.

Others include issues with motor skills such as poor pencil grip and coordination, difficulty forming letters, or spacing letters even if letter formation is adequate.

Red Flags for Dysgraphia:

• Awkward pencil grip
• Poor fine-motor coordination
• Unusual position of the wrist or paper
• Tires quickly when writing, hand hurts.
• Poorly formed or inconsistently formed letters.
• Poor spatial planning on paper
• Spells well on spelling tests but not in actual usage
• Lack of punctuation and capitalization
• Mixture of lower case and capital letters in sentences
• Failing to finish words or omitting words from sentences.
• Difficulty following spelling and grammar rules in writing.
• Poor sequence/organization of words in sentence
• Produces minimum content on a page despite oral ability to explain ideas.
• Avoids writing.

It is critical to identify the underlying problems resulting in dysgraphia and a detailed evaluation needed to be done to identify the underlying issues.

Accommodations are often needed to help dysgraphic children handle written work, including reduction of the load of writing in class and in homework, extended time to produce written work, and assistive technology to allow dictation.

It is better to consult your developmental Paediatrician to have an overview about your child’s writing difficulties and measures to tackle the challenges and overcome it.