Handwriting serves as a means of communication. Today, many of us communicate electronically. In fact, I personally prefer this method to the traditional hand written letter. My preference stems from my desire for convenience. I can effortlessly keep in touch with old friends or within minutes notify my child’s teacher of any recent developments.
I recently read a fascinating Wall Street Journal article titled, How Handwriting Trains the Brain, with a headline that read, “Forming Letters is Key to Learning, Memory and Ideas.” Researchers discovered that handwriting assists in learning letters and shapes in both children and adults. In fact, some doctors believe handwriting, a cognitive exercise, is beneficial for older adults to keep their minds astute.
In 2008, a study was conducted using adults to test their ability to identify character images using either the traditional pen and paper method or a computer keyboard. The adults who wrote by hand recognized the characters better, suggesting hand movements aid in visual learning. Interestingly, after discussing this article with my husband, we both recall rewriting our notes from some of our college courses. At the time, we thought we were making our notes more legible for future references, e.g. all nighters before a final. However, this exercise most likely assisted both of us visually by reinforcing the concepts learned in the classroom.
In kindergarten, both of my children received lessons on conventional handwriting. While my son and daughter’s approach is not the preferred method (top to bottom, left to right with a continuous stroke when possible), they still write legibly. Recently researchers discovered that handwriting engages the brain in learning. Indiana University conducted a study with children using letters. The children who practiced writing the letters produced enhanced neural activity (“adult like”) verses their counterparts who only looked at the letters.
A University of Washington educational psychology professor stated “handwriting differs from typing because it requires sequential strokes to form a letter, whereas keyboarding involves selecting a whole letter by touching a key. She further stated “pictures of the brain have illustrated that sequential finger movements activated massive regions involved in thinking, language and working memory.” She recently conducted a study with second, four and six graders which revealed that those students who hand wrote their essays expressed more ideas with more words than their counterparts who used a computer.
Overall, these studies indicate that hand writing enhances brain power. The Erudition™ activity and coloring book is a great tool to practice writing. This book offers advice on how to hold a pencil, proper formation of letters, writing sight words and positional words and much more. It also contains parental tips to help a child excel at both reading and writing.
Source: Bounds, Gwendolyn. “How Handwriting Trains the Brain.” The Wall Street Journal. 5 Oct. 2010: D1, D4.
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