It’s not just the writing they’re learning. Writing gives a consistent way to practice fine motor skills in general.
There are some fucking klutzy kids around who’ve never done much drawing or colouring, never done much craft with scissors, never played an instrument…they’ve never had all that many organically occurring opportunities to practice fine motor skills. If the only practice they get with those broad skills is writing, and then we cull the writing, when do they learn?
Handwritten info tends to be retained better than typed. Something about the physical act of writing makes it stick in the memory. There’s been a measurable downward tick in kids’ ability to recall information when prompted, and it may be linked to more kids no longer writing. So there’s that.
Handwriting is some of the most consistent practice kids get with fine motor skills in general. More and more kids are learning to do things like tie their shoes, button or zip their own clothing, open packets or manipulate a pair of scissors later than expected, because they’re getting less opportunity - between less writing, less drawing, less messy art/craft stuff, less of everything hands on - to develop strength and control in their hands. So there’s that.
Handwriting hasn’t actually been replaced with typing. If you actually watch them…they hunt and peck with one finger, because that’s how touchscreens work. If would be different if the skill of handwriting had been replaced wholesale by typing, but as it stands it seems they’re not learning EITHER skill very well. A kid without the skills to do either is a kid who’s going to struggle to communicate clearly beyond a certain level of complexity.
It’s not the handwriting itself. It’s everything the handwriting practice helps them develop.
That’s just it though. They’re NOT being taught through other methods. Kids are measurably getting worse at fine motor skills, and picking them up at later ages, because they’re being given fewer and fewer chances to practice. Kids are doing less drawing, less messy craft, less of just about everything hands on.
Writing is one of the few options we have that we can guarantee every child - no matter what materials they have access to at home, no matter how involved their parents may or may not be - has ample opportunity to do.
I get it. Handwriting can be a pain in the backside. I’m literally sitting here with a diagnosed disability that makes it super hard for me - I have cerebral palsy, my fine motor skills are shite - so I absolutely get it. I still handwrite when I can, because it’s some of the best skill development/reinforcement you can do for fine motor.
They’re doing much, much less of it at home…which means that there are a lot of kids coming into primary school with already extant skill gaps. That’s WHY they’re trialling ECE stuff for slightly older kids - because the kids haven’t learned it yet, when they should have.
When I say “they’re not doing it at home” I was referring to fine motor skills in general. Because they’re not drawing, not crafting, not playing with the tactile stuff as much.
They come in behind on fine motor generally. Writing is a consistent, every day activity - right from the absolute basics of the alphabet or number recognition and learning to spell/write their own name - that strengthens fine motor skills. If we take writing away as a daily thing, we’re going to struggle to come up with an equivalent activity that can be done as frequently, by as many children, in as many different settings, as writing is.
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Why the slow decay of children’s handwriting skills spells trouble (www.theage.com.au)
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