Re: OT: Delayed writing

[Guest guest]

I will address a few specific comments here.

I do like the OT ideas and other things that many people have

recommended. It does depend on WHY your child does not like to write,

which of these ideas would help.

> Our son still doesn't like to color

and wants

> to do his own instructions on work pages i.e. when it says CIRCLE

THE ONE IN

> THE MIDDLE he wants to circle all...even though he KNOWS the concept

of

> MIDDLE.

Many AS children, including me, are very sensitive to the concept of

equality and fairness, and also symmetry. For example, we will even

treat inanimate objects with fairness, and it can be difficult to

choose one object because we believe that the other objects will be

sad. For symmetry, I like things to be even, and when I was first

learning to write, if my sentence was too long for one line on the

paper, and I had one or two words left over, I would not put them

beginning on the left side of the next line, I would center them.

So your description here about circling all the objects sounds very

similar, I would think the un-circled objects might be sad, so I would

want to circle all of them so none of them would be sad. I would also

not like to circle a single object unless it was the center object, I

would not like the asymmetry of the circled object being to the left

or right of center.

This can also be a subconscious indicator that your child is sad

because frequently left out of games by the other children, so he is

trying to make up for it in the only way he knows how and has control

over. This is a very accurate description of what I was like when

younger.

> OT: Delayed writing

>

>

> Our 5 yo son dislikes writing very much because it is very difficult

for

> him. He just recently began to color although it is all over the

page. Has

> anyones child been so delayed in writing but eventually was able?

Any

> recommendations beside OT? Presently we do hand over hand but he is

so limp.

> I worry because writing is a major part of life.

>

Here is the handwriting link from my site. Perhaps some of my other

issues will apply to your child, and a few of my ideas might help you.

http://home.pacbell.net/cscomp/handwrit.htm

Also, do not make him write too much, especially if it is hard and he

is limp, because too much will make his hand tired, and he will learn

to hate it more. Do many things oral, and the things he writes make

them fun, like sidewalk chalk or writing his own stories or something

he would enjoy.

He may also not like to write because it is hard to make it look nice,

does the teacher insist on making it look nice? He might feel

defeated which is why he won't even try. Perhaps being happy with

whatever he writes, rather than always trying to make it better and

improved, would help him find motivation to write more.

Dana

[Guest guest]

I have not read all e-mails so if this is repeated I am sorry. We have a

private tutor, who used to be a teacher, work w/Ross a couple hours a day

twice a week. Ross has trouble writing and coloring also. Janet has Ross

write, using a stencil. It has all the letters and #'s on it. It is not

too big or too small. He uses it very well. To get Ross to color, she has

him hold very small pieces of crayons to help him w/the tri-pod hold. Ross

loves #''s, so Janet has him color a large xeroxed # on a plain piece of

paper. He uses notepad at home on the computer, and I am just hoping if he

can't write that well, he will be able to use a lap top of some sort.

Loren

Loren Van De Griek

mommy to - 6yrs, Ross - 4 yrs(ASD), Seth - 22 months

Hickory, NC

" the harder the struggle, the greater the victory "

Shop for great Kay products with me online

at: www.marykay.com/lvandegriek

At 07:54 AM 9/29/2001 -0400, you wrote:

>You can put a chalk board or dry erase board on the wall, or tape a piece of

>paper on the wall and let him draw on it, trace big shapes,etc... This will

>help build up his LOW TONE, which is what I am assuming is the problem, as

>my son has issues with sustained handwriting due to low tone. Having the

>things he is copying be interesting to him will help. Motivation is the key

>here. Good luck!

>

>Laurie

>

>

>