What would you do about a 6-year with "intentionally" messy handwriting...

[Halcyon]

He writes above grade level (punctuation, spelling and grammar-wise), and absolutely knows how to write neatly. He can and does write neatly when I ask him specifically to do so. When I ask him why he doesn't write that way all the time, he says "I like the way I write." :glare:

 

He does form his 'i's from the bottom, which I work with him on (drives me crazy) When he does HWT practice, he writes very neatly. But when he does his narration or dictation...ugh. We go through his work, and if there are "floaters" or "sinkers" (and yes, I realize there are other connotations to those words :lol:) he has to erase them and rewrite them. If any letters are scribbly, he rewrites those. He dislikes having to redo them, so the question is, why doesn't he do them neatly the first time? Again, he says he "likes the way he writes" (yay for self-confidence!) but come on.......

 

It's not the biggest deal in the world, but I wonder if anyone out there has a child who can write very nicely, but chooses to not....

Edited December 8, 2011 by Halcyon

[Myeightkiddies]

He may not ever have the best handwriting; however, if this is an instance when you are wanting him to write neatly, he should put forth his best effort. Some children may not be gifted in mathematics, but when they are doing math they should put forth their best effort. Handwriting, also a school subject, should be the same when the instructions you give him states to write neatly.

 

If it was handwriting time (including dictation/narration/copy) and one of my children was intentionally doing a poor job, I would have them fix it until presentable. I would go over it with him/her to be sure that the child understood how to fix it. I also make the children fix their math mistakes. I don't insist on perfection, but effort is effort.

 

Anyway, just my opinion. Handwriting time is the same as any other subject. It takes time and effort to improve.

[Myeightkiddies]

Blah..just adding..

 

Yes. I've had one like that. It was like pulling teeth. :grouphug:

[acurtis75]

My 6 year old is exactly the same. I think if i remember correctly our 6 year olds are both accelerated and using similar curriculum. She can write neat but it requires more time and focus and she just could care less about neat work. She turns in one assignment that looks fine and the next one is terrible. Letters are different sizes and crooked and look sloppy. Math is especially bad, one page has neat numbers reasonably close to the size of the ones on the worksheet and the next is almost illegible. I stopped making her re-write everything and just focus on neatness during handwriting assignments.

 

We also use hwot. I have seen a slight improvement since I allowed her to start cursive. She's been asking for a year and a half but I was waiting for her printing to I prove. I finally gave in since she kept asking and her cursive is better than printing so we might just switch to all cursive when she learns all the letters. I think we may have less of a problem once we switch over.

[Alte Veste Academy]

accelerated...can write neat but it requires more time and focus and she just could care less about neat work.

 

I stopped making her re-write everything and just focus on neatness during handwriting assignments.

 

 

Here too. I think the bolded is why. It's been a struggle with my DS8 for years and I finally gave up. I am not having WWIII over a skill he possesses. When he does copywork, I want perfectly formed letters. The rest of the time, it must be legible. Period.

 

I have noticed that when he writes about things for other people (piano/guitar theory, art class), his penmanship improves. That's something and I'll take it! :lol:

Edited December 8, 2011 by Alte Veste Academy

[nansk]

I wonder if anyone out there has a child who can write very nicely, but chooses to not....

I do. My dd can write well (in Italic cursive) when I insist she writes neatly (for WWE copywork). But at all other times, such as when doing Maths or a vocab workbook she LOVES to do "sloppy work" as she calls it. At other times, she writes elaborate, curly-wurly letters and numerals. It depends on her mood. So far, I have let her do this just to keep her interested in the work. As long as she writes nicely where it matters, I let it be.

[Karen in CO]

Eventually all of the skills come together at the same time and place consistently, but not at 6. He's still working on that skill. If he writes well during handwriting, then that is terrific. Congratulate and reward that. All three of mine have been this way. Heck, I'm even that way. If I am writing something on purpose, I write more neatly than if I'm just taking notes.

[go_go_gadget]

I also have a six year-old boy. We've talked about how the care we take in doing our work shows the respect we have for the work that we're doing, and for ourselves. I don't know if something like that might help, but I also don't know if I'd choose that battle as long he regularly demonstrated that he still had the skill to write nicely and did so on assignments.

[Chris in VA]

I know this sounds a little weird, but there is a difference between writing your letters and drawing your letters. Kids who are just learning and haven't become truly fluent writers (they still have to think about the way to form the letters) tend to be rather neat, as they often are drawing the letters. Kids on their way to automaticity tend to get sloppy as they figure out their own script or handwriting--they are not as focused on the writing and are more focused on the purpose of the writing, on the content of the writing. Sometimes the "fusion" will happen around 8 or 9--when writing neatly melds with writing for content. Aaand sometimes it just never does get super neat unless the kid is intentionally thinking about it.:D

[JumpyTheFrog]

My 5 year old does copywork, but no dictation yet, so I may be off base here...

 

Is it possible that getting the words down right uses up all his concentration, leaving little left for neatness? If so, maybe you can have him take the dictation, and then always plan to have him rewrite it in careful handwriting.

[boscopup]

I have noticed that when he writes about things for other people (piano/guitar theory, art class), his penmanship improves. That's something and I'll take it! :lol:

 

:iagree:My son has sloppy handwriting much of the time, but one time he was writing a note to an elderly man at church who had just had surgery. He had the NEATEST handwriting I've ever seen him do! I was shocked!

 

In regular schoolwork, even copywork/handwriting time, his handwriting is not that neat. Sometimes he even does "block letters", where the 'o' is a square, etc. :tongue_smilie: I told him for copywork/dictation, it needs to be NEAT. I also have him rewrite letters that I clearly can't read (like if his 'n' looks like an 'h'). He is probably still "drawing his letters", as a PP mentioned. He has to really think when writing. This is such a hard stage because I know he has great ideas in his head - his oral narrations are excellent and sound fairly mature. He just can't physically write them down yet! If he has to write something original, he'll set his own word limit (though I told him if he counts words or sets a word limit of 10, he's doing 2 sentences :lol:).

[Hedgehogs4]

He writes above grade level (punctuation, spelling and grammar-wise), and absolutely knows how to write neatly. He can and does write neatly when I ask him specifically to do so. When I ask him why he doesn't write that way all the time, he says "I like the way I write." :glare:

 

He does form his 'i's from the bottom, which I work with him on (drives me crazy) When he does HWT practice, he writes very neatly. But when he does his narration or dictation...ugh. We go through his work, and if there are "floaters" or "sinkers" (and yes, I realize there are other connotations to those words :lol:) he has to erase them and rewrite them. If any letters are scribbly, he rewrites those. He dislikes having to redo them, so the question is, why doesn't he do them neatly the first time? Again, he says he "likes the way he writes" (yay for self-confidence!) but come on.......

 

It's not the biggest deal in the world, but I wonder if anyone out there has a child who can write very nicely, but chooses to not....

 

Warn him before you start that if he doesn't use his best handwriting that he will have to do it again until you are satisfied. You may spend one or two miserable days, but I'd wager it would fix the problem. I have the same problem with my 6yo girl. I look at her and say, "Is that your best?" and she gives me a sheepish look, pulls out the eraser, and does it again. I don't let them have the freedom to produce sloppy papers.

 

Actually, it sounds like you don't either, but I mean write the WHOLE THING over again. Make it more miserable than just erasing a few things. kwim?

[foxbridgeacademy]

What I would do is expect "neat" writing when it is part of the assignment. Otherwise ignore everything that is at least legible. I also have really pretty writing(cursive) when I want to but my regular cursive can be a mess. The thing is it is faster for me and I can read it. Constantly neat handwriting is a battle I wouldn't personally choose. It could backfire and make him fight you over all writing.

[Alte Veste Academy]

Warn him before you start that if he doesn't use his best handwriting that he will have to do it again until you are satisfied. You may spend one or two miserable days, but I'd wager it would fix the problem. I have the same problem with my 6yo girl. I look at her and say, "Is that your best?" and she gives me a sheepish look, pulls out the eraser, and does it again. I don't let them have the freedom to produce sloppy papers.

 

Actually, it sounds like you don't either, but I mean write the WHOLE THING over again. Make it more miserable than just erasing a few things. kwim?

 

I'm :lol: because I'm jealous over here. If all I got was a sheepish look, I wouldn't have this problem. A sheepish look followed by compliance would be a dream scenario around here. :D

 

I will say that there is a world of difference between perfect handwriting and sloppy. I don't allow sloppy, illegible writing. I just don't expect his handwriting to be perfect unless he is working on his copywork/dictation.

 

Everyone must choose their own battles though. In the realm of best work, I will admit to caring infinitely more about the content than the form.

[Lecka]

My son can be like that, too.

 

I have heard that if he is copying something, all he has to concentrate on is the neatness of his handwriting. Then his handwriting should be good.

 

When he is having to think about what he is writing and how to spell what he is writing, those are two additional tasks, in addition to neatness.

 

His neatness is not automatic yet -- it takes concentration from him.

 

So -- I would prefer for him to concentrate on his spelling right now, as the thing that is most important to me. The other two areas are not what I am concerned about right now.

 

I think they will come.

 

If he seems to be able to spell and write with little effort, maybe it is time for him to work on doing all 3 things well at the same time.

[DragonFaerie]

Warn him before you start that if he doesn't use his best handwriting that he will have to do it again until you are satisfied. You may spend one or two miserable days, but I'd wager it would fix the problem. I have the same problem with my 6yo girl. I look at her and say, "Is that your best?" and she gives me a sheepish look, pulls out the eraser, and does it again. I don't let them have the freedom to produce sloppy papers.

 

Actually, it sounds like you don't either, but I mean write the WHOLE THING over again. Make it more miserable than just erasing a few things. kwim?

 

I do this, too. I don't demand perfection but if it starts looking like chicken scratch, I shrug my shoulders and say, "Hm. I can't read this. You'll need to copy it over again." I have gone so far as to mark something wrong because it was too sloppy to read easily.

[Hedgehogs4]

Everyone must choose their own battles though. In the realm of best work, I will admit to caring infinitely more about the content than the form.

 

:iagree: of course. I don't demand the "best handwriting" in every situation. There are times, though, when there has clearly been no care taken and that is when I make her do it over.

 

I do this, too. I don't demand perfection but if it starts looking like chicken scratch, I shrug my shoulders and say, "Hm. I can't read this. You'll need to copy it over again." I have gone so far as to mark something wrong because it was too sloppy to read easily.

 

This sounds like my approach with her mumbling! Not to change the subject but my dd6 mumbles HORRIBLY and always has. Drives me crazy, and it seems like the handwriting and mumbling are connected somehow! :lol: I make her repeat herself several times, don't answer her, remind her...I cannot get her to speak up and speak clearly. She can, believe me, when she WANTS to, but jeepers it makes me crazy.

[bbkaren]

I'd just like to mention that this whole thread has been such a comfort to me!

 

We're just afterschooling but my son's (1st grade) teacher is a stickler about handwriting and it's something we really, really, really struggle with.

 

He's okay with rewriting it but honestly, it takes so much time.

 

So it's good to know that if, once we start homeschooling full-time, I relax the standards a bit on the handwriting it's not the end of the world.

[Paige]

Shoot, you all, I have a 10yr old like that. I've started working very deliberately with his handwriting for a few minutes every day. I sit right next to him during his dictation and copywork and stop him after every unacceptable letter. He hates it, but it helps. Then, I've been working with him letter by letter to practice forming them the correct way. I try to make them cursive equivalents of print as much as possible so it will help both his cursive and print. I point out the finer details to him that he hasn't really learned before and then watch him practice. I've seen a difference in these letters in his other work. I ignore all but the worst in other subjects although I do point out that his messy writing causes him to make math mistakes when he mistakes a 4 for a 9 or something. My DS also has issues with spacing and slanting- it's not just the letters that make things look messy. Sometimes the actual letters are fine but it looks a mess because of weird spacing and angles.

[MeganW]

I don't have a child that way (too young), but *I* do it! My normal handwriting is complete henscratch. When I write something that other people are going to need to read, I make the effort, and my handwriting is perfect, if somewhat juvenile. But it's so much faster to do it my normal way, and I can read it, so when I am taking notes or making a grocery list, I'm lazy! :)

[Aurelia]

Ariel used to do that a lot. I'd look at her writing and tell her I couldn't read it. Sometimes she couldn't either. I would make her redo her work and she finally realized that it was much less work to write neatly the first time.

[Guest]

My 13 year old son is the same way. he refuses to change his writing. For him, his brain is faster than his hand but he won't write in cursive, either. No amount of copywork or handwriting programs has helped this child. I figure he will change it when he sees the need. he doesn't so he won't. I gave up the battle.

[DragonFaerie]

My 13 year old son is the same way. he refuses to change his writing. For him, his brain is faster than his hand but he won't write in cursive, either. No amount of copywork or handwriting programs has helped this child. I figure he will change it when he sees the need. he doesn't so he won't. I gave up the battle.

 

He might change his tune (and his handwriting!) if you start being unable to read his answers on his schoolwork. A few bad grades and/or missed problems due to illegibility might fix it.

[acurtis75]

 

I will say that there is a world of difference between perfect handwriting and sloppy. I don't allow sloppy, illegible writing. I just don't expect his handwriting to be perfect unless he is working on his copywork/dictation.

 

Everyone must choose their own battles though. In the realm of best work, I will admit to caring infinitely more about the content than the form.

 

:iagree: It has to be legible but I pick and choose what I require to be written in her best handwriting. I'm not sure but that might actually be a suggestion I read in WTM.

[SpreadingtheFeast]

erase...erase...erase :tongue_smilie:

[Ester Maria]

Here is my tactic:

 

Writing which is a part of a daily, regular school work that does not require to be handed in specifically - such as note-taking, for example - can be written however they feel like, as long as it is legible for them and it does not present practical problems.

 

Writing which is the kind of a school work that has to be handed in has to be written to the best of their ability to write elegantly, at the threat of having them redo it if it is obvious that they are being sloppy due to the lack of effort.

 

So, penmanship is obviously something they hand in, as are various little reports and things of the kind - but daily, mechanical kind of things, I was fine with having it "as long as it is legible" however they wished.

[Roadrunner]

I am giving up. My 6 year old's handwriting is the sloppiest I have seen. I know he can do it better if he could just take his time, but instead he rushes through everything. He will write in 5 minutes what he should probably spend 10 minutes writing. Oh yes, he is now inventing cursive at 70 miles an hour. He thinks connecting letters (he doesn't know how to do it) is a "big boy" thing to do. Just yesterday I erased his letter O 4 times and finally had to let it go. I have decided to blame it all on his left-handedness so I can feel better.

[Halcyon]

Here is my tactic:

 

Writing which is a part of a daily, regular school work that does not require to be handed in specifically - such as note-taking, for example - can be written however they feel like, as long as it is legible for them and it does not present practical problems.

 

Writing which is the kind of a school work that has to be handed in has to be written to the best of their ability to write elegantly, at the threat of having them redo it if it is obvious that they are being sloppy due to the lack of effort.

 

So, penmanship is obviously something they hand in, as are various little reports and things of the kind - but daily, mechanical kind of things, I was fine with having it "as long as it is legible" however they wished.

 

This is good advice! He writes all the time, and it's not illegible by any means, it's just not picture-perfect :tongue_smilie: So I think for narrations, I will require "as good as you can do" and for the rest, let it go.