Dysgraphia is a processing issue. Dysgraphia is described as:
"Dysgraphia" is a learning disability resulting from the difficulty in expressing thoughts in writing and graphing. It generally refers to extremely poor handwriting.
SYMPTOMS
1. Students may exhibit strong verbal but particularly poor writing skills .
2. Random (or non-existent) punctuation. Spelling errors (sometimes same word spelled differently); reversals; phonic approximations; syllable omissions; errors in common suffixes. Clumsiness and disordering of syntax; an impression of illiteracy. Misinterpretation of questions and questionnaire items. Disordered numbering and written number reversals.
3. Generally illegible writing (despite appropriate time and attention given the task).
4. Inconsistencies : mixtures of print and cursive, upper and lower case, or irregular sizes, shapes, or slant of letters.
5. Unfinished words or letters, omitted words.
6. Inconsistent position on page with respect to lines and margins and inconsistent spaces between words and letters.
7. Cramped or unusual grip, especially holding the writing instrument very close to the paper, or holding thumb over two fingers and writing from the wrist.
8. Talking to self while writing, or carefully watching the hand that is writing.
9. Slow or labored copying or writing - even if it is neat and legible.
SYMPTOMS
1. Students may exhibit strong verbal but particularly poor writing skills .
2. Random (or non-existent) punctuation. Spelling errors (sometimes same word spelled differently); reversals; phonic approximations; syllable omissions; errors in common suffixes. Clumsiness and disordering of syntax; an impression of illiteracy. Misinterpretation of questions and questionnaire items. Disordered numbering and written number reversals.
3. Generally illegible writing (despite appropriate time and attention given the task).
4. Inconsistencies : mixtures of print and cursive, upper and lower case, or irregular sizes, shapes, or slant of letters.
5. Unfinished words or letters, omitted words.
6. Inconsistent position on page with respect to lines and margins and inconsistent spaces between words and letters.
7. Cramped or unusual grip, especially holding the writing instrument very close to the paper, or holding thumb over two fingers and writing from the wrist.
8. Talking to self while writing, or carefully watching the hand that is writing.
9. Slow or labored copying or writing - even if it is neat and legible.
(Taken from: http://www.as.wvu.edu/~scidis/dysgraphia.html Visit for strategies and other dysgraphia information.)
What is Dysgraphia?
Dysgraphia is a neurological disorder characterized by writing disabilities. Specifically, the disorder causes a person's writing to be distorted or incorrect. In children, the disorder generally emerges when they are first introduced to writing. They make inappropriately sized and spaced letters, or write wrong or misspelled words, despite thorough instruction. Children with the disorder may have other learning disabilities; however, they usually have no social or other academic problems. Cases of dysgraphia in adults generally occur after some trauma. In addition to poor handwriting, dysgraphia is characterized by wrong or odd spelling, and production of words that are not correct (i.e., using "boy" for "child"). The cause of the disorder is unknown, but in adults, it is usually associated with damage to the parietal lobe of the brain.
If your child has excellent fine motor skills but still exhibits any of the above, then dysgraphia is a possibility.
(http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/dysgraphia/dysgraphia.htm )
What is Dysgraphia?
Dysgraphia is a neurological disorder characterized by writing disabilities. Specifically, the disorder causes a person's writing to be distorted or incorrect. In children, the disorder generally emerges when they are first introduced to writing. They make inappropriately sized and spaced letters, or write wrong or misspelled words, despite thorough instruction. Children with the disorder may have other learning disabilities; however, they usually have no social or other academic problems. Cases of dysgraphia in adults generally occur after some trauma. In addition to poor handwriting, dysgraphia is characterized by wrong or odd spelling, and production of words that are not correct (i.e., using "boy" for "child"). The cause of the disorder is unknown, but in adults, it is usually associated with damage to the parietal lobe of the brain.
If your child has excellent fine motor skills but still exhibits any of the above, then dysgraphia is a possibility.
(http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/dysgraphia/dysgraphia.htm )
Gifted children may show poor handwriting:
Poor handwriting is often used as one indicator of learning disabilities. However, many and perhaps most gifted children will show poor handwriting. Usually this simply represents that their thoughts go so much faster than their hands can move, and that they see little sense in making writing an art form when its primary purpose is to communicate (Webb & Kleine, 1993; Winner, 2000).
(http://www.sengifted.org/articles_counseling/Webb_MisdiagnosisAndDualDiagnosisOfGiftedChildren.shtml Approximately 16 paragraphs in, under the heading "Dual Diagnosis")
If your child is showing signs of dysgraphia, please take heed and do your research before writing it off as being lazy, or the lack of trying, or blaming yourself for not working with him/her consistently.
Personal experience: My son had 3 years of OT doing fine motor activities before I learned about dysgraphia. I got the OT to let it go. He was diagnosed with dysgraphia last year, at 17 years of age. I knew that's what it was at a much younger age but it took a long time to find a professional that understood what dysgraphia is and how to diagnose it properly. He uses his keyboarding skills to compensate and writes beautifully, articulately, and with ease. There's always a way!
Update:
It has been brought to my attention that I completely disregarded the sub-types of dysgraphia in this article. My apologies! There is also dysgraphia, dyslexia, dyscalculia, spatial dysgraphia (which also can be classified as spatial issues or sensory spatial), motor dysgraphia (which also can be classified as fine motor or gross motor issues or muscle tone issues or sensory oral issues), etc...I didn't get into all that because this is just a quick overview of the MAIN type of dysgraphia.
However, if you would like to dive deeper into Dysgraphia information, here are some links for you:
Wikipedia (not that I trust it but some do and this seems to give a nice overview): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dysgraphia#cite_note-Facts-5
LDInfo on Dysgraphia with links to more information at the bottom of the page:
http://www.ldinfo.com/dysgraphia.htm#top
Another definition of Dysgraphia:
http://www.dyslexiaa2z.com/learning_difficulties/dysgraphia/dysgraphia_definition.html
Warning signs of Dysgraphia for all ages:
http://www.ncld.org/ld-basics/ld-aamp-language/writing/dysgraphia
Just the Facts (PDF) on Dysgraphia:
http://www.dyslexiasd.org/factsheets/dysgraphia.pdf
Developmental Dysgraphia (Wikipedia):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dyspraxia
A small definition of the main types of Dysgraphia:
http://learningdisabilitiesofsk.blogspot.com/2011/04/what-are-different-types-of-dysgraphia.html
2 comments:
Sniff. Sniff. Sniff. Been here, done that! Very frustrating when the "professional" tells you your kid is just being lazy. Or worse, when they blame your homeschooling for the child's disability. I am SO glad for good people online with real information, so I don't have to carry a load of guilt, thinking I ruined my kid!
awwww RP. I'm sorry that's happened to you. It's pretty frightening that the internet has become a good source of information. LOL
~Jen B
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