"Why is Writing So Hard?" A Guide to Understanding Dysgraphia: The Brain-Based Approach of Educational Psychologist Dr. Steven Feifer
Is your child's handwriting illegible, with disproportionate letters and no spaces between words? Or perhaps their handwriting is neat, but they can't seem to put their thoughts on paper, and writing a single paragraph takes hours? If these problems sound familiar, what you're facing may not be simple "laziness" or "carelessness." It could be dysgraphia, a close relative of dyslexia known as a written expression difficulty.
Educational psychologist and learning disabilities expert Dr. Steven Feifer emphasizes that not all writing difficulties are the same. With his "brain-based" approach, he states that dysgraphia has different neurological subtypes and that to provide effective help, we must understand the root of the problem.
The Complexity of the Writing Process
Writing is an incredibly complex action that requires many different parts of the brain to work in harmony. According to Dr. Feifer, a disruption in this process can lead to different types of dysgraphia:
- Phonological Dysgraphia: In this type, the problem lies in the ability to match sounds with letters and to spell words correctly. The child might omit sounds or use incorrect letters when writing a word they hear (like writing "cat" as "ct"). This stems from a difficulty in the brain's phonological processing center and is often closely related to dyslexia.
- Visual-Spatial Dysgraphia: Here, the problem is with correctly remembering the shapes of letters and organizing them on the page. The child may write letters backward (b/d confusion), leave disproportionate spaces between letters, or struggle to stay on the line. This is caused by a weakness in the parts of the brain that process visual and spatial information.
- Lexical / Orthographic Dysgraphia: This is one of the more complex types. The child might write words that are phonetically correct but visually incorrect (for example, writing "rain" as "rane" because that's how it sounds). The problem is the ability to store the correct spellings of words in a mental dictionary (orthographic lexicon) and retrieve them from it.
What to Do? Understand the Source of the Problem
Dr. Steven Feifer's approach teaches us to go beyond the label of "bad handwriting." Understanding which type of difficulty your child is experiencing is the first step to helping them correctly.
- If the problem is phonological, apps like Applexia that gamify sound-letter matching will be very beneficial.
- If the problem is visual-spatial, multisensory techniques (writing letters in sand or play-doh, using wide-lined paper) can be helpful.
- If the problem is lexical, repeatedly studying high-frequency words visually and playing word games is important.
Conclusion: Go Beyond the Label
A writing difficulty is not an indicator of your child's intelligence or effort. It is a sign that their brain is taking a different path to perform a specific task. By adopting Dr. Feifer's brain-based approach, you can understand the specific challenge your child faces and provide the most appropriate support. Tools like Applexia can make this difficult process less frustrating and more fun, helping your child express their thoughts with confidence.
Bibliography:
- Feifer, S. G. (2009). The Neuropsychology of Written Language Disorders: A Framework for Effective Interventions. School Neuropsych Press.
- Berninger, V. W., & Wolf, B. J. (2009). Teaching students with dyslexia and dysgraphia: Lessons from teaching and science. Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company.
- Dehaene, S. (2009). Reading in the Brain: The New Science of How We Read. Penguin Books.