It is still really developmentally normal in first grade to write things backwards. I saw still quite a few kids do it up through second grade, and not so many by third grade.
Practicing writing the numbers correctly can help.
It's developmentally normal for neurotypical kids, or kids who don't have either an LD or physical disability that is impacting handwriting skills. Kids who have dysgraphia, for instance, look somewhat developmentally "normal" in K-2nd grade simply because NT kids go through a slow-writing and reversing letters/numbers stage. Practicing writing numbers correctly will help those NT kids, and it can help dysgraphic and physically challenged kids *to a certain limited extent*... but it will not take away the dysgraphia or physical challenge, it will not really help learn to write if it's done in a punitive, exhausting way.
I think jack'smoms comments touch on what is probably happening with the teacher - it's easy for a person who isn't familiar with these types of handwriting challenges to think practice will help in the same way it helps a typically developing child.
I can only give an example with dysgraphia, since that's what is I'm familiar with, but this is the reason that this line of thinking doesn't work for dysgraphic students. Dysgraphic children have a neurological disability that prevents them from developing automaticity of handwriting. Every time they write a letter using handwriting they are having to go through the process of thinking how to form it. This not only leads to incredibly slow handwriting which may be illegible, it also takes up all of the child's working memory, so nothing is left over to use for other aspects of writing such as spelling, punctuation, grammar, etc - and most importantly, nothing is left over for thinking about the *content* of ideas that the child wants to express. Handwriting also causes physical pain for some dysgraphics. Pain, frustration, and resulting fatigue are all very valid reasons *not* to make a dysgraphic child repeatedly practice handwriting without a very carefully designed and well thought-out plan of how to approach it.
marytheres, this same type of thing happened to my ds in early elementary and I did my best each time to educate by giving brief information sheets about dysgraphia to the teacher, talking about it, giving them examples as you've given an example above. I'll be honest, the last time it happened I blew my stack! Only for a few minutes, but I was very loud and very clear - it was not right and it was a violation of ds' IEP. I think it took me getting upset for his teacher to finally really have everything I'd tried sharing with her in terms of information sink in. Even today, in middle school, with teachers who genuinely care and want to accommodate and understand ds, there have still been three or four times this year when I've had to go back to square one in explaining the impact of dysgraphia.
polarbear
