A child whose hand is not yet strong will not fix their writing by writing more. Build the hand first.
Squeeze and pinch — Every day
Play dough, bread dough, a wet sponge, a clothes peg, bubble wrap. Two or three minutes. This builds the muscles between the thumb and first finger — the ones that hold a pencil steady.
Pick up small things — Every day
Move dry beans, rice, buttons or beads from one bowl to another using the thumb and first finger only, or child-safe tweezers.
Tear and crumple — A few times a week
Tear paper into strips. Crumple one sheet into a tight ball using only one hand. Both hands take turns.
Work standing at a wall — A few times a week
Tape paper to the wall or a door and let the child draw standing up. Working against a vertical surface strengthens the wrist and shoulder, which is where poor handwriting usually starts.
Everyday practice that counts — Whenever it comes up
Buttons, zips, shoelaces, pouring water, using a spoon and fork, helping to knead dough. These are real handwriting practice.
The pencil rests on the middle finger. The thumb and first finger pinch it lightly near the point, and the end of the pencil points back over the hand. The other three fingers curl into the palm. If the whole fist grips the pencil, or the thumb wraps over the first finger, gently reset it — but only two or three times in a sitting. Correcting more than that makes children avoid writing altogether.
Starts letters at the bottom
Nearly all letters start at the TOP. Say 'start at the top' and point, rather than taking the pencil.
Letters float above or sink below the line
Ask the child to put every letter 'sitting on the line' like a chair.
No spaces between words
One finger laid on the paper after each word makes the gap.
Presses so hard the paper tears, or so lightly it cannot be seen
Both usually mean the hand is tired. Go back to the squeeze activities.
Swaps hands, or the paper is straight up and down
Let the child choose one hand and keep it. Tilt the paper slightly toward the writing hand.