<p>DS is about to start 11th grade. He's done a few hours of PSAT/SAT prep over the last week or so and today he took a practice SAT. He did well but his writing score suffers because his essay is scored lower because his handwriting is almost illegible. He sees no hope of improving it because he has to write the essay so quickly. I've thought for years that the school systems should not have discontinued teaching cursive, because printing is so much slower.</p>
<p>He's planning to take the SAT in October, right before the PSAT (which, fortunately, doesn't have an essay section). Our hope is that he won't have to take it again. The SAT tutor thinks he can break 2300 if he improves his writing.</p>
<p>Most schools don’t consider the writing portion. I thought the SAT was being revised again…and the writing section was being eliminated. Maybe I’m hallucinating that.</p>
<p>Good point; I hadn’t thought of that. Maybe I shouldn’t worry too much about the writing section. I just looked up the new SAT, and it doesn’t come until 2016, too late for DS. The writing section becomes optional.</p>
<p>I can sympathize with the handwriting struggle. Our boys had terrible handwriting.
We did have them go to an occupational therapist who specialized in handwriting. It helped.
Another thought might be to get permission to use a tablet. I have seen tablets used in our high school. If a tablet can be a school accommodation, maybe College Board would allow it. </p>
<p>I’m not even sure at this point in your son’s life that handwriting is worth spending much time on if it takes away time from the development of other academic and life skills. Handwriting habits are laid down in early childhood. Many smart people have bad handwriting, either because of poor fine motor coordination or some other reason. It was a problem before the age of word processors. Many colleges don’t even use handwritten assessments anymore; kids take written exams in computer labs, and of course they type all their papers.</p>
<p>How much time does your son have to focus on improving his handwriting? That’s the question. As the Writing SAT is not long for this world, maybe he’s be better off focusing on conventional test prep and doing well in his high school classes. Perhaps he can identify a few specific letters he does not write clearly when he prints, and practice printing them more mindfully in order to make his writing more legible. That might be more useful than trying to adopt a completely different mode of writing at this late stage. </p>
<p>Would it help if he had a fatter pencil? My son has fine motor problems and handwriting that is not the best. His handwriting is easier to read if he uses a bigger pen/pencil and doesn’t have to concentrate as hard on holding it.</p>
<p>Ugh. I sympathize, but I don’t have any solutions. S has handwriting that is not terrible, but is super-small. Not the easiest to read. I don’t think it is worth your S getting all wrought up about the essay portion of the W section. Just write as clearly as he can and let it be.</p>
<p>Mechanical pencil, 7 mm, and writing in capital block letters. My handwriting is terrible, but it always improves with a mechanical pencil (although I prefer 5 mm). Yes, the rules say that you are not supposed to use mechanical pencils on the PSAT, but my DS did so with out problems and I have always done so on my battery of tests without problems.</p>
<p>You might look at “handwriting without tears.” It’s more for learners but they have some books to help write small print that might help. I used it with my youngest in middle school who has major penmanship issues and it made a big difference. I struggled myself and my printing didn’t improve until I took a drafting class summer after high school graduation. Something about writing on graph paper snapped things into place for me. </p>
<p>The threat of added attention at military college did the trick Our S had the worst handwriting growing up. When I saw some of his writing in college I was shocked…he said it was either write legibly or get in trouble with those who could impose “incentives” (aka punishment). I would never have believed he had it in him…others may have real physical issues, but I’m thinking many schools do not require kids to suffer through the methodical training to develop the muscle memory needed to print neatly. It’s a skill that requires time and effort, which IMHO is better spent on other subjects. I don’t think it’s a big deal…as long as you can sign your name. </p>
<p>^ A calligraphy workshop is a fun system… and it works.
One trick is to NOT try to print but to “attach” the letters so that they flow along with the thoughts. It’s much faster, too, in addition to being neater.
A great tool is Pilot’s Calligraphy Fountain Pen Large Tip : once you’ve mastered the pen (takes maybe three days’ writing), it’s a challenge to write poorly!
Then, about 2 weeks before the test, switch to a large tip, large body pencil (or mechanical pencil).</p>
<p>Handwriting is actually going to be very useful: booklet tests and in-class essays will be part of this kid’s regimen in college (I doubt he’ll attend a college where multiple choice tests are frequently used without essay questions), handwriting your notes rather than typing them helps in memorizing (because you have to focus at the word-level if you write in attached cursive/italics, rather than at the letter level like when you type), and is overall a nice skill to have for a personal touch (thank you notes, daily log, etc.)</p>
<p>"The computer accommodation is not appropriate for these students:</p>
<p>Students with poor handwriting, unless there is evidence to show it’s caused by a disabling condition. Poor handwriting is not considered a disability."</p>
<p>Thank you all for the responses. I think that it’s worth trying a few things to see if his handwriting can be improved. Some great suggestions here, and I’ll look into them with DS. I like the idea of learning to attach letters so that writing speed increases. </p>
<p>There is no way he has a disability - he’s an extremely accomplished pianist. I wish that control would translate into his writing/printing.</p>
<p>Don’t assume he doesn’t have fine motor issues/dysgraphia just bc of his piano skill. Both of my sons are talented musicians with diagnosed handwriting issues. A quick suggestion for testing is to use the Dixon Ticonderoga Tri-Conderoga pencils. They are fatter and a triangular shape that is very helpful for those with grip and hand strength and coordination issues plus they are black and look cool so they don’t mind using. I would also look into getting an OT eval ASAP if you think his handwriting might warrant accommodations on the SAT/ACT. That process requires time and documentation. </p>
Our S had the worst handwriting growing up. When I saw some of his writing in college I was shocked…he said it was either write legibly or get in trouble with those who could impose “incentives” (aka punishment). I would never have believed he had it in him…others may have real physical issues, but I’m thinking many schools do not require kids to suffer through the methodical training to develop the muscle memory needed to print neatly. It’s a skill that requires time and effort, which IMHO is better spent on other subjects. I don’t think it’s a big deal…as long as you can sign your name. </p>