Writing aids / Pens / Typing

[Blaadyblah]

Pretty sure I've seen those in Asda too.

Modnote: To avoid duplication please remember to check the topics on Writing and driving, there is over four years experience in each and they have many handy tips.

[WinonaLemonade]

i've seen them pens before so will bear it in mind but she said the ones in whsmiths were quite expensive, something like £15. i'll have a look through all the writing threads

[iNeko]

My pen came today! I'm so pleased with it, it's really heavy (I like heavy pens for some reason) and I can actually write! It's incredible! I took a photo of it sitting on the box, incase anyone wanted to see it!

[SaucyAlysoon]

I love my Pen Again! They also have them in pencils, which is great. I got 2 for about $4 a piece a couple months ago and they're fantastic. I also like the Sensa brand pens because they have really squishy grips and don't hurt if you grip them hard like we all do.

[mobilemum]

I just realised that many HyperMobile children have fine motor difficulties and can struggle with handwriting so I thought I'd pass on a tip. My DS is HM and Dyspraxic and has always struggled with handwriting and we have tried everything from special grips to special tables etc etc BUT what we found worked best was lots of structured practise. WE found that the stuff you buy from Smiths etc wasn't enough and wasn't structured enough. What has really helped are the Rights Start workbooks that we got from Lark Education http://www.larkeducation.co.uk/handwriting-resources-and-workbooks/cat_54.html

They also help his Dyslexia because they incorporate spelling and grammar, so win win!

He is also starting to learn to type with the Nessy tying tutor that I got from the same site which also reinforces phonic spelling etc

Hope this helps!

[fussymum]

Hi,
Im really pleased that your ds has had a positive breakthrough regarding his handwriting difficulties. While I agree that in some cases structured, tailored practice is useful, it is not beneficial for all individuals with hypermobility syndrome. For those whose difficulty is physical ie extremly poor hand strength- whereby holding the pencil for any period of time is an achievement in itself. theese individuals must be allowed to develop an alternative way of recording, not to do so is just plain cruel and counter productive.The most important thing for children is that they achieve their potential in a way which is right for them. Parents may find 'My Way' of interest its a scheme backed by Henry Winkler that promotes the right for children with senco needs to be taught and learn in the way which serves them best. This scheme is supported by the childrens newspaper First News. I too am a fan of 'Nessy' and can allready see a benefit of using the nessy system.
Hope the success continues.
Fussymum

[cyberbarn]

Hi,

Thanks for some of the insights here on handwriting. We are now in a position where my 13 year old can just about write his name in capitals, and that's it.

What I think started out as a HMS problem of holding pencils has turned into a Asperger's syndrome problem. For instance he still eats with his fingers because he says that when he was little he couldn't handle the cutlery, and now he has been not using cutlery for so long that it wouldn't feel right to start using it!

We agreed a couple of years ago we would stop putting pressure on him to practice writing, as it was clear it was doing more harm than good, but last night I mentioned it again and asked what it would take to get him to write and he said a psychiatrist!

Of course much of what is on the market to help a child learn to write is geared at much younger children. What sensible teenager would used workbooks meant for 4 year olds!

I have tried Nessy with him before (part of the bargain was that if took the pressure off from learning to write, that he would learn to type) so maybe I should try that again.

Does anyone else have any other learning to type things? Something that would appeal to a 13 year old? I learned to touch type at 13 in school, the old fashioned way. We had to type to marching music played on a very old portable record player! I somehow don't see that working with my son!


cheers,
Jennifer

[mobilemum]

As an adult I actually like Nessy! It is much more fun than the Mavis Beacon type stuff and that is important because it boils down to practice and lots of it - which you won't do if it is boring.

Obviously our children are all different. What I meant to say about the Handwriting materials is that they help to 'maximise' my son's writing potential while helping his spelling and grammar at the same time. He is still only on the 9th centile for free writing speed for example, but he can now produce something vaguely legible, given enough time!

[jojackson]

Ugh Mavis Beacon!

I like the penagain (google it) pens, as they are much less strain on my hands, so I am able to produce something legible that's longer than a couple of words. Otherwise I find that I have to take so many breaks from writing that I completely lose my train of thought! Writing with a felt tip pen can also help, as it takes less pressure and grip.

Learning to type was a godsend, though now even that can be a bit much for my hands. If it's an option for any of your children, Dragon Naturally Speaking (voice to text) has utterly revolutionised my life! The latest version doesn't need to be trained to your voice in the way that previous versions did, and learns the things that you say most often, which really improves accuracy. It's obviously not appropriate for classroom work, but for homework, and particularly essays, it's brilliant (less good for maths/science unless you're prepared to put in a lot of work training it).

[cyberbarn]

If it's an option for any of your children, Dragon Naturally Speaking (voice to text) has utterly revolutionised my life! The latest version doesn't need to be trained to your voice in the way that previous versions did, and learns the things that you say most often, which really improves accuracy. It's obviously not appropriate for classroom work, but for homework, and particularly essays, it's brilliant (less good for maths/science unless you're prepared to put in a lot of work training it).

We got Dragon, hoping that it would help my son. But he found that he froze when expected to speak, didn't know what to say and so on. But then he is like that if people talk to him. He can answer questions directed to other people, but can't answer questions he is asked directly.

However, I found Dragon a life saver as just after we got it I did my wrist in again (how did I get to my 40s without realising that it was the hypermobility causing all the problems with my wrist?) and it was great to be able to rest my wrist and still communicate with others.

So yes, I think Dragon would be great for older children and adults who have problems with writing, but doesn't work so well for those kids that also have expressive language problems.

And I guess that is one of the difficulties for some. They don't have just one straight forward difficulty, but several things going on at once that all interact with each other.

Cheers,
Jennifer

[Rosebud]

I've forund a few other ergonomic pens that look interesting.
Has anyone tried any of them?

Has anyone tried the YoroPens? I found them at Penheaven.co.uk and at Amazon





I also found this one, the Ring Pen. (It's also available at Amazon)

[Rosie]

Hi Rosebud

I have used the yoropen, and I find it good, but I don't use a pen that much. As they are quite cheap (£4 - £5) they are definitely worth a try. I prefer a wider pen, but the grip on the yoropen was quite comfortable once I had adjusted it. I didn't hold it the way they showed, but it worked for me.



Rosie

[mami2four]

I am just about to purchase some pencil grips for Lili-Mair who will be going into juniors which means the amount of writing will be going up considerably. Her writing is very neat for her age but she is very slow and seems to grip her pencil in a very unusual manner and so hard she subluxes her thumb. In her last parents evening a lot of her work wasn't quite finished as she kept running out of time.

There seem to be so many different types around I figured I woud buy her this combi pack to see which she gets on with best
http://www.letmelearn.co.uk/combipack-p ... p-573.html

Still waiting for her wrist splints/thumb spicas to come back from orthotics but I'm not sure wether they will be any good for her writing hand though as they have ordered her ones with metal bars up her wrist and up her thumb.

She has a brand new teacher this year and I'm hoping I will be able to mould her young mind into my way of thinking as the other teachers all seem very set in their ways

Katie

[madmum]

My son just had an o.t assessment for his hands. He had different pens to try. He was most successful with a stubby blue plastic pen with different colour nibs. It was quite wide. However we hit two problems, we cannot find them and it is biro which the school do not want. Anyone any ideas? does anyone know whrer to get these pens?

[madmum]

Found an excellent pen for my son. It is from staples and is a chunky retractable pen. I can even write left handed with it!