My son has problems writing.

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Recently we went to our sons parent teacher meetings. Our son is thirteen and has aspergers. All the teachers agree that he is very clever but unfortunately his writing is really bad in fact he can't seem to express himself in writing at all but he is very good at anything verbal. If he's asked a question in any subject maths and French included, he knows the answer, but if he has to write the answer down he will write a short badly worded sentence that's practically illegible.

Has anyone else come across this problem? I wonder will it just improve or what we should do to help him.

It's could be a fine motor control problem that makes handwriting difficult. See if the school will allow him to use a laptop to type his answers instead of writing them by hand. If it's not a problem with his handwriting but actually a block that makes turning thoughts into text difficult, get him a speech-to-text program that will type what he's saying as he says it (won't work in class, obviously, but will work for things like homework.)

Dysgraphia? Typing would be good, if it's just his handwriting.

The problem I always had was with not being able to figure out exactly what I should write. Answering questions is often easier because there's more guidance - you just have to give the short piece of information asked for, and if the question isn't clear enough you can ask for clarification or indicate that you don't know what they're asking for. Written assignments and essay questions are usually more open-ended, so it's harder to figure out what to answer. For me at least, if I need clarification it's easier to ask immediately, while still interacting with the instructor -- going back to ask questions after the initial interaction is over is much harder. Also, the less specific the question is the harder it is for me to figure out what kind of answer is wanted, and people can become frustrated about how specific they need to be (I guess most people are more comfortable making assumptions about what to do). He might know the material but not know which material to include or what to say about it.

My 8yo nephew is like this, too. His school has provided a laptop of sorts (glorified electronic typewriter vs. an actual laptop full of distracting programs.) for him to type his work on. I think he's still using it this year. As far as I know, he's able to type up work a lot easier than putting pencil to paper. Could be worth a try.

I had problems like you're describing. For me, the dificulty was more with having to organizing my thoughts to get the written response correct on the first try. Failure to do so means you have to erase or crossout the mistake, then your work just gets messy. I often answered with simple responses, that weren't as complex or involved as my initial response really was, because my understanding was significantly better than my ability to communicate.

I've found that I really don't EVER need to write anything complex by hand in my professional life. Part of my job (programmer) is writing technical documentation that explains what a code change or new feature means to a user. If I had to get that information right on the first try (handwritten) I'd be completely DOOMED! But, that's not how things work in the real world. I use a word processing application that allows me to put my thoughts down, then arrange them in a way that's consumable by others. I've even received compliments on how well I do it.

See how he does when typing the answers into a word processing application. This will allow him rearrange the words if things don't come out right on the first try. I think there's a good chance this may allow your son to more accurately communicate in written word. Then get the school to allow him to use a laptop as part of his EIP.

I hope that helps.

j0sh

Last edited by j0sh on 05 Mar 2013, 7:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.

yes - it sounds as if he has non verbal learning difficulties that havent been clearly identified yet - it must be so frustrating for him....

sounds like a type of dyslexia - so many dyslexics find it extremely hard to write even simple sentences - even if they can spell and read correctly. The WAIS tests pick this up sometimes as in the mismatch you describe between his ability verbally to express and then the the massive slowing down when it comes to writing - IMO it could be something like a processing issue - lots of us have this


To put you at ease - I know people with similar problems who are v academic - they get round this issue in many ways such as typing etc...

plus some dyspraxia perhaps re illegibility of handwriting - does his hand hurt when he rights - does it get tight ?

I have both the processing and phyical issues with writing, using a laptop was a potenital solution at your sons age however I rejected it becouse I would have stould out like a sore thomb, I prefered failure over looking different. however these days all the kids have Ipads/phones/computers etc. so that may be a good option now a days.

I always prefered to do my rough draft on the computer to start with then do the usual 3 step process (written-type 2nd draft-final), basicly making it a 2 stepper and my teachers were OK with that. Some of my tests had some questions changed also to remove the complex word problems and replace them with another kind of question, sometimes my tests were longer then the others i'm guessing to make up or the easyer brakedown.

Thank you all for your very helpful and interesting replies.

He does get extremely frustrated with this writing problem. He has discalculia and I suppose could easily have some forum of dyslexia, I think he probably has dyspraxia too. I haven't actually asked him if writing hurts his hand, it's difficult to bring up the subject of writing as he mostly won't talk about it. I will ask him about it next time it seems possible to mention it without him getting in a temper.

Typing would be an answer, except he hates being different to the other kids and would rather battle on with the writing than have a laptop on his desk. Its horrible for him when the whole class is copying something down because the only way he can remotely keep up with them is by scribbling something illegible.

But he was taught to type in primary school and does find it easier than writing. Hopefully he will eventually find a career that doesn't involve any writing. thank you, I do feel a bit better about this now.

I know the feeling of taking pages of notes off the overhead projector, rushing along writing illedgable notes only to fall behind and have the teacher change the note before I was finished, the anwser: photocopys from the teacher of the overheads. taking notes like that isn't worth it, even more so since the effort I was putting in was so much more then the other kids, and my fingers were killing me even with my special thick soft pen.

Hi Rapidroy, thats a good idea, I must talk to the school and see if he could be given photocopies of the notes. I wonder if I could get him a thick soft pen, it might help. I've never seen such pens, I wonder where you get them.

Do you still have the same problems with writing? Or do you stick to typing now?

hand writting has always been hard for me because I have a weird grip and I have tremors. also answering open ended questions is really difficult for me.

Hate to say it however after 23 years it never got any better at all, I still type or if I have to write a list with important info like part numbers I write in all caps and lately I like graph paper becouse I can write 1 letter per square, helps alot when someone else has to read my writing(or in case I forget what I wrote). I have just had to just relise that it is what it is, not my fault and yes the bank often asks my birthday becouse I can't even sign my own name the same twice!

Also I found the fix to one issue may not be a fix for another, so maybe if you get photocopyed notes, let him use the computer to do projects/assignments, give extra time for tests to avoid rushing etc. Look into the pens/pencels he uses as I said I liked my 3x thick soft pen better and I would have bought one of those sensa pens had I not had a habit of loseing pens. If you haven't yet go to an office supply store (staples, office depot, art supply stores etc.) and try different ones and see what he likes. Be prepaired to spend a little more though and when you find a good one stock up incase they discontinue. The elmination/assistance of word problems in math/english was in my IEP as well.

Its been almost 4 years since I graduated high school however honestly I think times have changed to the point where he could use a word processer and not stand out much, even more so as the grades go on. Even back then you should have seen the stuff kids were using, one non-disabled kid used to take photos of the board with his camera phone! I know Ipads are working their way into schools aswell around here for everbodys use.

As for the use of speak to process software equipment I wouldn't becouse I knew I would stand out, I could have and chose not to, I know I will take flak for that comment however I understand completely why he dosen't want to stand out, I had enough issues with that as it was already.

Have you tried asking about a smartboard?

I typed.

But heavier pens, weighted ones are supposed to help.

Thank you for your replies, it's really very helpful.

So, it looks like my son will never really be good at writing. The school has given up giving him homework, he really couldn't and wouldn't do it. I'd love it if he would do some homework on the laptop, I will mention it to his special needs teacher. We live in Ireland, kids mostly do writing in class rather than using computers. I can't imagine what the teacher would say if she saw a child photographing notes off the board! They aren't even allowed to turn their phones on during school hours. I'm not sure he's done much computer work yet. He doesn't ever tell me about his day, unless something bad has happened.

I am going to look into getting better pens for him, but he looses or breaks everything so can't spend too much.