Writing is an act of self-expression involving both motor and intellectual skills. One of these motor skills is the ability to hold and manipulate the writing instrument, specifically the pencil in this article.
The Immature and Inefficient Pencil Grasp
Some children have access to writing instruments at an early age. With their innate drive for mark making, it is not surprising that these children find their own ways to grasp and manipulate these writing tools. Some children, sadly, are pushed into writing lessons at too young an age.
When hand muscles are not fully matured and developmentally ready for writing, children may grip the pencil in less efficient ways. These include using the entire palm as in the fisted grasp or the digital pronate grasp. They may also wrap their thumb around the pencil with the index and middle fingers pressing the pencil onto the ring finger (thumb tuck grasp) .
These early gripping habits not only block the use of the correct muscles for handwriting but place stress on developing muscles and joints, which may even lead to arthritis later on. Children can develop poor endurance for writing activities and even suffer from writer’s cramp when they need to write more.
The Efficient Pencil Grasp
The pencil is held about 1 to 3 cm from the tip, resting on the middle finger while held between the pads of the thumb and the index finger. This is the tripod grip. Equally acceptable is the quadrupod grasp. Resting on the side of the fourth finger this time, the pencil is held with the tip of the thumb, index and third finger.
For both the tripod and quadrupod grasp, the thumb and index finger are slightly bent to form an open circular-shaped web space. This web space is closed in certain pencil grips as when the child positions the thumb parallel to the index finger, or when the index and middle finger wrap around the pencil with the thumb pressing onto these fingers. A closed web space leads to difficulty in moving the pencil.
Kim Stitzer, founder of the Draw Your World website, suggests that children maintain the open web space by pretending to hold a round ball as they write.
Problems with Pressure
Finger positioning is one thing. There must also be equal pressure applied by the fingers involved. The child’s grasp of the pencil should be firm enough, yet gentle, relaxed and even graceful. When the child’s hold of the pencil is too weak, the pencil slips off the limp grip. The child is barely able to leave an impression on the writing surface, or the marks made are broken. Sometimes the child presses too hard, breaking pencil leads or making holes through the writing surface.
Correcting Pencil Grip in the Early Years
It is critical that children move away from inefficient grips to effective grips. Occupational therapists recommend that problems with the pencil grasp be addressed before age 6, after which changing of the grip will be a struggle.
Pencil management affects the writing product in terms of quality and quantity. When the pencil is held correctly, fingers rather than the whole arm, shoulder or elbow direct pencil movement. This is less tiring. Better pencil control also leads to more legible letter formation, supports overall brain development and will eventually impact upon school performance.
Carolyn Marie Choo - Carolyn Choo is an educationist with over 16 years of experience. Her areas of specialization include literacy, literature and early ...
