So, my two boys are definitely outdoor types, love to get in the dirt, and rough house. Sitting still, (except when watching a favorite movie), is no fun for them. That said, they are usually not very interested in fine motor activities, arts and crafts, etc…Learning how to write and practicing handwriting for them has been one of the things we’ve had to work hardest on, with their ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) therapists, at school, and at home with Daddy and I. One of the therapy (and IEP) goals is for my oldest to write his first and last name. His preschool teacher was sending home these awesome worksheets that had his name preprinted on them, and I just had to share the website because I think it’s too cool 🙂
http://www.kidzone.ws/TRACERS/NONE/index.asp
You can choose what your child practices writing, it could be a series of the same letter, several letters, their name, address, you name it. It prints your desired text in upper or lowercase which is also super cool and gives you four lines on a page.
This is nice because it can break up the practice so it’s not too overwhelming for the child. For my son, I know we would have him write his name once, (one line’s worth), then he got a short break to do a preferred activity like play with dinosaurs, watch a short clip on youtube, etc…Now he has done all four lines before needing a break and we are so pleased!
If you are working on cursive with your kids (I can’t say I’m looking much forward to that, honestly) here is a cool site that will generate practice cursive pages with the letters connected:
I’m glad that handwriting is not a completely lost art in this age of technology. I firmly believe it does wonders for fine motor development as well teaches children patience, skills of observation and perseverance.
Another program that my children’s OT (occupational therapist) has used with my son is called Handwriting without Tears. You can find more info here, at http://www.hwtears.com
Have a great day!