Larchwood Handwriting Camp Recap

We just wrapped up our mini Handwriting in Nature Group here at Larchwood, and it was an exciting, mutlisensory-filled experience for the kiddos! To recap, some goals of the camp were:

• Review how to write letters correctly

• Build confidence with letter formation

• Build fine motor, gross motor and motor planning skills needed for handwriting

Many of the campers struggled with inconsistent spacing between letters, letter reversals, pressing down too hard, and difficulty making letters the right size. With this in mind, we planned various nature and multisensory activities to target these difficulties. While we only had a week, it was awesome to see improvements as we worked through these challenges together with the campers!

Some highlights from the week included:

• Skywriting our names and birthday month

• Telling a story with our yoga poses

• Doing a letter scavenger hunt on our big hike

• Writing in our journals to the daily prompts  

• Playing with clay and shaving cream to target those fine motor skills

Aside from these activities, we used the “Learning Without Tears (LWT)” handwriting curriculum, which takes on a multi-sensory and developmental approach to promote proper letter formation. According to the Handwriting Without Tears (2018) research review, they have a unique teaching order that starts with letters that have a vertical stroke. By grouping letters according to formation and complexity, a developmental approach is used, allowing children to learn in a scaffold sequence (LWT, 2018). Since easier letters are taught before letters with more complicated strokes, it provides an opportunity for students to build upon previous knowledge (LWT, 2018).

Now that handwriting camp at Larchwood is wrapped up, we will be sharing our resources and experiences with OTs running similar handwriting groups in the city. Stay tuned for more updates on the blog and Instagram!