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Box and Dot Handwriting Strategy
This handwriting technique is a strategy that I’ve used many, many times in school-based Occupational Therapy. It’s a handwriting strategy that uses boundaries of boxes and starting dots to help kids become more aware of letter size, letter formation, spatial organization, and use of lines. The box and dot handwriting strategy is perfect for…
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Sandpaper Letter Formation Trick
This easy handwriting trick uses an item you probably have in the workshop or garage of your house. Sometimes, a creative technique is all it takes to help kids work on letter formation and line awareness in their handwriting. We used sand paper to provide proprioceptive feedback through the pencil while working on handwriting skills that might…
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Friendship Gross Motor Activity
This ice cream gross motor activity is also a fun friendship gross motor activity too! In fact, movement games are a great way to build friendship and establish relationships, especially when team building and problem solving are involved. Here, you’ll find an ice cream bean bag activity that challenges not only core strength, movement patterns, and motor…
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Pencil Pressure Simple Handwriting Trick
We’ve shared a few different ideas on how to teach kids to write with appropriate pencil pressure. Sometimes, a different trick that you pull from your therapy sleeve is all it takes for a skill to “click” and handwriting to get a notch up on the legibility scale. This super simple trick is one that you can…
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Paper Placement when Writing with a Desk Positioner
One way to encourage legibility with handwriting and ease of written work is to address paper placement and paper positioning on the desk. Sometimes, kids have difficulty with placing the paper on the desk and might hold it very close to the edge of the desk, off to one side of the desk, or in an awkward placement.…
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Yarn Fine Motor Jewelry Craft
You know we love to share fine motor activities here on the blog, right? Kids’ crafts that promotes fine motor development is one that can be used to work on developmental goals, functional skills, and dexterity. This yarn fine motor jewelry craft is a process art project that uses this month’s process art material in…
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Desk Fidget Tool for School
When kids are working on handwriting tasks, they sometimes show difficulties with attention, focus, or legibility due to heavy pencil pressure, tearing of paper, or smudged pencil lines. Kids may have sensory needs while sitting at a desk as they are required to attend, or they might have typically developed sensory systems and show typical signs of fidgeting during classroom…
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Omitting Letters, Words, and Numbers when Copying Written Work
Copying assignments into the homework journal is just one job that student’s have during their day. But what happens when the student attempts to complete that homework and words, page numbers, and letters are missing, making the assignments completely illegible? When kids copy words from text, there are many visual perceptual skills at work.…
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Distal Finger Control Exercises
Distal Finger Control is a fine motor skill exercise in dexterity that is needed for manipulating the pencil with the fingers. Without distal finger control, a child uses wrist and forearm motions to move the pencil, form letters, and write with larger pencil strokes. Those bigger pencil lines tend to be less controlled and can result in legibility…
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Coban Pencil Grip
Pencil grips can be pricey, especially if you are buying a big batch to try and find the right fit for a single child. Then, add a classroom of kids or a caseload of 50-60 children who each have different pencil gasps, different strengths, different handwriting quirks, and you can go pencil grip bankrupt! This easy, DIY,…
