When I look at a child’s pencil grasp, I identify anything that could be making it difficult for them. It isn’t always their fingers.
- Very few kids are taught how to hold a pencil. A clever and observant handful mimic their siblings or teachers. They are usually the kids who also learn how to open the toddler gate and unlock your smartphone. The rest simply pick up a pencil and give it a go. That is a shame. And a mistake. Kids need to be shown and told how to hold a pencil.
- I look at how they are sitting. Awkward sitting feels normal to kids with ASD, low muscle tone, hypermobility, and sensory processing disorder. Fix the posture, and recheck the grasp
- Then I look at the tool they are using. They could be using the wrong pencil. They might be better off using a crayon, even past preschool.
One of my superpowers as an OTR is to be able to analyze the motor, sensory, and behavioral components of any skill and the motor, sensory, cognitive/perceptual and behavioral skills of the person struggling. As my mother would say, “It all comes out in the wash”. What this means is that when you can do both analyses, you can develop a plan.
Too often, teachers and parents want a child who is not ready or capable for a #2 pencil to use one in class. They almost always will use that tool at some point. They might not be ready now. THEY might want to use a #2 pencil like their peers or siblings. This takes some finesse to manage.
What can you do?
- Try as many different sizes and types of tools as you have available.
- Don’t ignore the amazing Learning Without Tears “flip crayons”. Designed to develop grasp, they are easy to find and easy to use: Can HWT’s Flip Crayons Transform Pencil Grasp in Preschoolers?
- Remember than #2 pencils come in short versions. Short pencil shafts are easier to control.
