HWT was not without tears for my son either in the beginning. Especially the workbook.
For now, you might consider doing some of their other handwriting (but not pencil/chalk writing) activities. There is the using the doorway as the rectangle and doing big arm motion air writing, using a baking sheet full of rice, sand, or shaving cream and writing there, the wooden letter building, the app, the songs, or the magnet set. We did a lesson with sidewalk chalk outside once where we made big letters and then he walked them and included the frog jump. You could do something like that at the beach too.
My son did not like handwriting drill but was much happier doing writing that mattered to him. So I could get more letters out of him by having him make signs, write notes, make lists, menus, etc.
Just some thoughts.
Good Luck!
Thanks for this suggestion. I originally thought something like this would not be helpful. He knows his letters by sight, and knows how they are supposed to look. And actually can write them well when going slowly. But, when left alone to write without supervision, they are all over the place and look like scribble for the most part. Honestly.
I was thinking he basically has been left to his own devices for a while re: writing, and learned to write letters wrong (for instance, he makes an 8 with two separate little circles as if he were not taught to draw an S and then close it up). I was also thinking a lot of this is relative fine motor weakness and working on what is difficult will improve his outcome. But maybe just the practice of how to draw the letters for fun would be helpful too (in a sensory box). We also have a phone HWT app to trace the letters, which he equally dislikes.
