Handwriting after Dianne Craft Writing Eight

[synchromom]

Hi,

I need help with choosing handwriting for my 6 year old dd for next school year. She is a lefty and was having multiple issues at the beginning of the year. We have been using the Writing Eight Exercise from Dianne Craft's Brain Integration Therapy Manual among other Dianne Craft products and ideas. My dd is doing very well with the Writing 8, and if I remind her she can use the handwriting verbal cues to write in her Explode The Code books.

Ok, finally to the question:001_smile: I want to buy a handwriting program for her for next school year that lends itself to using the verbal cues from the writing 8 exercise because that is how she remembers to form her letters. I cannot figure out what program that would be. Dianne Craft gives cursive suggestions on her site but not printing programs. I know a lot of people with lefties use HWT, but the letters do not look similar to those she has been writing.

Any seasoned advice? Anyone BTDT?

Thanks,
Sharon

[katalaska]

I used Dianne Craft's brain integration techniques with my middle child and among those was the Writing Eight exercise. I have used the Zaner-Bloser handwriting program with her (because that's what I had used with my oldest dd who didn't need handwriting help).

My ds has mild low muscle tone and an intentional tremor. He has spent much of this school year in occupational therapy to address these issues. I brought him in for OT because the low muscle tone and tremor were affecting his handwriting. His OT teaches handwriting and uses Handwriting Without Tears. She started my ds on that program (even though at home he uses Zaner-Bloser...again because that's what I've always used--and when I bought the books for one child I bought for them all).

The critical component of Writing Eights is to always start in the middle and go UP when making circles. When you did the Writing Eights, did you also do the alphabet? That is how we did the exercise...three journeys through the actual eight, followed by one letter (written while saying it out loud), followed by three journeys through the eight, followed by the next letter (written while saying it out loud).

The imprinting of the directionality is what was critical for my middle child. She was forever starting her letters from the bottom and making her circles in the wrong direction. Her letters were often reversed (and in special-needs preschool she wrote her name mirror-image). The Writing Eights helped her correct the reversals and she has done fairly well with the "typical" style of handwriting program (ZB which, incidentally, is what our local public school uses). Like you with the ETC books, for quite some time after retraining her with the Writing Eights, I had to remind her "up the middle and around" (my verbal cue to get her to go UP the center of the eight) and we had to talk about which side of the "stem" of the letter had the curve. Also, to help her, I taped the Writing Eight alphabet to the wall in front of her desk as a "ready reference."

For my son, HWT helped him to focus, through direct instruction, on controlling his hand/finger movements so the lines of his letters ended up where they were supposed to be (generally his handwriting was pretty good in that the letters were formed, for the most part, correctly).

HWT breaks handwriting down into very manageable chunks and, like the writing eights, emphasizes the similarities between letters ("Magic C" letters, and so on).

I would say either ZB or HWT would be good choices. My kids are all right-handed, though, and I'm not sure how much difference it would actually take. HWT required a lot more of me "standing over" my ds and repeating verbal directions so he would write his letters correctly. ZB was just practice in making letters the right way and felt less teacher (me!) intensive.

If you feel the Writing Eights have addressed all your dc's handwriting issues, then a "practice" program like ZB would be all that is needed, IMO. If, however, you feel that your dc continues to need direct instruction in letter formation, then HWT might be a better choice.

My ds is only 6 and even though he has used both programs (ZB and HWT) he hasn't seemed to suffer any "confusion" from utilizing two different methods. If your dc does not struggle with reconciling "new ways" to do things (like my middle child does...if she has learned it one way that is the ONLY way to do it, in her opinion--she has a hard time with change) I think either of the programs we have used would work just fine. Alternatively, you could "modify" instructions from any program as needed so they more closely resemble the things your dc has learned and now uses from the Writing Eights.

HTH

[synchromom]

Thanks. All of your advice is a huge help. I have never looked at Zaner-Bloser, so will check into that.

Yes, we do all of the alphabet during the Writing Eight exercise. My daughter had many reversals and was writing her name and other common words as mirror images. The writing eight has really turned all of this around. I just know that we will need to move on and apply what she has learned through the writing eight exercise to regular handwriting.

Thanks again for your help and experience.

Sharon