Learning & Movement – The Pencil Grip (warning sign #1)

Today, I proctored a state test for a group of five students who receive special education services. The photographs below show how they held their pencils. None of the pencil grasps demonstrated here match what the writing experts call “correct.” The tripod grip.

Writing must be tiring for these children.

As I circulated among their desks, I wondered if from their toddler years, every time they held a pencil or crayon, their parents and teachers ever thought that they were giving a signal that they needed help.

Pencil grip and learning?

You may be wondering, “What in the world is she thinking? What does one have to do with the other?”