Correct pencil grip?

[ScoutTN]

I hold my pencil with my thumb and first finger. The pencil rests on my middle finger.

I was in a training session for a Spalding-type program recently where the trainer said the pencil should be gripped with the middle finger and the thumb. Seems odd to me. What do you think of this?

How do you hold your pencil?

 

[EKS]

I hold it the way you do.

[*****]

I hold my pencil the same way, and I am a leftie.  I think the pinch and flip method to teach kids, especially pre-schoolers, on how to hold a pencil correctly is quite clever.  See especially at 1:17.

pinch and flip to hold pencil - Search (bing.com)

I thought this was helpful also:

How a child's pencil grip develops (and how you can help) – Mrs Learning Bee

[Clarita]

On 6/29/2024 at 12:15 PM, ScoutTN said:

I hold my pencil with my thumb and first finger. The pencil rests on my middle finger.

Interesting... I retrained myself as an adult to hold it this way. Mostly because I do calligraphy as a hobby and they seem to hold it this way. It gives more range of motion when writing: easier to control the size of your font you can easily go bigger or smaller and you have to grip less so you can write longer.

My previous grip was with my middle finger but my thumb wrapped around. Definitely a wrong grip and I say prior but when I'm not thinking about it I definitely fall back to my erroneous grip.   

[Ellie]

On 6/29/2024 at 2:15 PM, ScoutTN said:

I hold my pencil with my thumb and first finger. The pencil rests on my middle finger.

I was in a training session for a Spalding-type program recently where the trainer said the pencil should be gripped with the middle finger and the thumb. Seems odd to me. What do you think of this?

How do you hold your pencil?

 

It's close enough for me. In fact, Mrs. Spalding said that the pencil should be gripped with the middle finger and thumb, with the pointy finger resting on the pencil. But even holding it the way you do gives you a good grip, e.g., you're not grasping the pencil such that you cannot properly form letters, and your hand doesn't tire from writing. Unless your pencil is almost upright instead of sort of leaning back to your hand, IYKWIM. That's going to be a little awkward.

[maize]

Any grip that offers sufficient stability, control, and flexibility and is comfortable for the person writing is just fine. There isn't one grip that is ideal for everyone.

[8filltheheart]

I hold with my thumb and the tip of my second and nestled against the side between the tip and 1st joint of my 3rd. 

[J-rap]

I hold mine with my thumb and middle finger, and my pointer is just there to give it a little extra stability.  I've always held it like that and I remember I had teachers in elementary school who tried to correct it, but it is what it is.  It's fine.  Except I do and have always had a callous on my middle finger from holding it that way!

[SKL]

I am with you, Scout.

It doesn't matter too much any more, since important writing isn't really done with a pencil/pen any more, other than signatures.

At least one of my kids has an "incorrect pencil grip," but she has so many other challenges that this was not the one I was going to fuss about.

[ScoutTN]

2 hours ago, SKL said:

I am with you, Scout.

It doesn't matter too much any more, since important writing isn't really done with a pencil/pen any more, other than signatures.

At least one of my kids has an "incorrect pencil grip," but she has so many other challenges that this was not the one I was going to fuss about.

Well, the second graders I will be teaching this coming year will do plenty with a pencil.😉 Most adults don’t anymore, you are right. Except maybe those, like me, who are old and think better with a pencil than a computer because that’s how we grew up. 

The Spalding-recommended grip seems very odd to me and I was wondering why the author of our book would stick with it when the pinch and flip/index finger and thumb is the standard.