DD8 HATES to write and avoids if at all possible. I can't tell if the problem is that she can't keep up with her thoughts OR if something else is going on. She doesn't have a problem with drawing and will write neatly for a spelling test, but the teacher says her writing is really laborious. Most of the time it is very sloppy. I know part of that problem is that she is unhappy with school, but how can I tell if there is something more to this?

Can your dd answer questions, tell a story, etc. verbally? Can she type? How was her writing last year?

She can tell a story in great detail and is very verbal. She is very comfortable with standing in front of a class and doing presentations.

She does not know how to type yet - I need to work on that. Last year, her writing was very slow, too. But she was slow about doing all of her work. I couldn't figure out why until she finally told me she was upset that she wasn't learning anything.

I don't know much about dysgraphia, so I don't know what to look for. In thinking about this today, I think it has gotten messier this year. I don't care as much about how it looks but that it seems to be a difficult task for her. I'm considering trying to skip her to 4th next year but I'm worried about how much more writing will be required.

How do you test someone for dysgraphia?

I had never heard of dysgraphia until a couple of days ago, so I'm really behind the 8 ball on this one. But in reading about it last night, it does sound a lot like her, especially the part that says they can write really well for a short while such as during spelling tests, but it is hard for them to do for very long. I will definitely have the psychologist address this next Month. I do hope that this does not shut the door on a grade skip for us - it's probably impossible if she can't pass the CBE tests this summer which will require some writing.

If dysgraphia is her problem, then I'm really mad at the first grade teacher who made her miss a lot of recess when she didn't want to write her spelling words in "rainbow colors" (words that were ridiculously simple - a pointless exercise for her). I didn't find out about recess until later, either - I seem to be getting caught off guard on a lot. I feel really terrible about that.

Is dysgraphia more of a brain issue or a muscular issue? I wonder if having such a delayed bone age would also impact the muscular development? Her bone age is 4.5 - almost 5 SD low for her chronological age. Maybe this is just a separate problem. We will not get any test results for her growth problems until later this month. People think she is a 6yo when the see her. This ride is getting wilder all the time...

Master of none, I would love to hear more about your experiences.

Has she had any visual/perceptual testing?

My dd has been to specialist after specialist, test after test and a laundry list of potential diagnoses over the last three years.

We finally found a Neurodevelopmental Optometrist (2nd opinion) that pinpointed DDs visual issues that impacted her writing-reversals,messy, poor copying speed, etc etc.

She is now in vision therapy a month and I can see improvements!

www.covd.org - to find a qualified DO in your area.

This may not be what you need, but just a thought.

My understanding is that writing troubles can be both 'brain' and 'body' - how is her posture? I know that writing will be affected by poor 'core muscles' or low finger/arm dexterity. Have you had a Physical Therapist evaluation to see if her bone age is affecting her physical development.

BTW - don't blame yourself for not being 'on the ball' there is no ball! Our kids didn't come with instuction books and the 'professionals' are often 180degrees in the wrong direction. You are working hard NOW, and that's all that matters. I was totally in the dark until DS was in 2nd grade!

Grinity

Everyone, thanks so much for all of your replies. I will do some more research on these ideas. I don't know what we would do without the Internet!

I have not gotten much information about the bone age yet as we just got that news 3 weeks ago. The Endocrinologist is doing many tests. I've sensed that she hasn't been growing right for a while. I had to push for this to be done but wasn't expecting it to be so delayed. I wish I had done it a year ago, but that's all in hindsight! I am feeling overwhelmed with trying to investigate so many issues at once. At least DD5 is in a happy place for now. And she's my challenging child!

BTW - don't blame yourself for not being 'on the ball' there is no ball! Our kids didn't come with instuction books and the 'professionals' are often 180degrees in the wrong direction. You are working hard NOW, and that's all that matters. I was totally in the dark until DS was in 2nd grade!

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I have had a problem with guilt because I thought I should know more about my son's difficulties than I did. My son told me that he knew I was not "Momniscient" as in "all knowing mom." He realizes that even doctors miss things they should have noticed. Professionals don't even know it all. I got a good laugh out of this one: http://studentsgrow.blogspot.com/2008/06/visual-motor-integration.html