What Is Dysgraphia?
Dysgraphia is a neurodevelopmental condition and a learning difference, where a person has difficulty translating their thoughts into written language ¹. It is characterised by difficulty spelling, organising ideas in written language, using correct grammar and punctuation, and handwriting. It is also referred to as specific learning disorder in written expression ³.
The prevalence of dysgraphia is not known, but it is estimated that 3-5% ¹ of the population have a learning disorder. Importantly, dysgraphia does not reflect a person’s lack of knowledge or inability to generate ideas ³.
What Causes Dysgraphia?
The specific cause of dysgraphia is unclear. It is thought that dysgraphia is caused by challenges in orthographic coding and working memory ¹. Orthographic coding is the brain’s ability to store and analyse written words, creating permanent memories of their appearance, pronunciation, and meaning. A disruption in this process can lead to dysgraphia ².
Dysgraphia generally appears when children are first learning to write. It may also be acquired through an event such as a traumatic brain injury (TBI) ¹.
Dysgraphia is typically diagnosed by a psychologist ². Difficulties in handwriting and fine motor skills may be identified by an occupational therapist. Before a diagnosis can be made, a child must have recieved at least 6 months of intervention in spelling and written expression with minimal progress ³.
Signs of Dysgraphia
Signs of dysgraphia often include:
- Difficulty writing letters (e.g., writing letters backwards or mixing upper and lower case letters)
- Difficulty spelling (e.g., knowing letter-sound rules) ⁴
- Slowed rate of writing ³
- Difficulty structuring written sentences with correct grammar and punctuation (e.g., leaving out words in sentences) ³
- Difficulty planning, organising and producing whole texts (e.g., narratives, essays) ⁵
- Dysgraphia may have additional effects on a person’s confidence and motivation at school ²
Dysgraphia and Other Learning Disorders
Whilst dysgraphia can occur alone, it most commonly appears as a comorbidity with other learning differences and conditions, such as ⁴,⁵
- Dyslexia, which is characterised by challenges in reading comprehension, accuracy and fluency, in addition to spelling ².
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
- Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD)
How Speech Pathology Can help
Talkshop’s Speech pathologists would begin with an assessment of a child’s phonological awareness, receptive (understanding) and expressive (use) language, reading and spelling skills. Once a child’s specific areas of difficulty have been identified, a speech pathologist will provide a targeted speech therapy program for the student. Areas of support may include:
1. Improving Phonological Awareness and Phonics
Phonological awareness describes the ability to recognise, identify and change the sounds in spoken words. These skills are foundational for both spelling and reading. Children also develop their ability to blend and segment the sounds within words. Specific supports may include building letter-sound awareness through interactive games and activities.
2. Spelling support
Students with dysgraphia will often need more opportunities to practise spelling skills ⁵. Speech pathologists can provide support to learn and remember spelling rules. Memory strategies such as Spaced Retrieval Strategy (SRS) and vocabulary skills are also targeted to increase a student’s knowledge of written words.
3. Enhancing Language Organisation
Speech pathologists can provide scaffolded, step-by-step support to improve the planning and organisation of sentences and whole texts. This may include teaching of sentence structures (syntax), grammar and punctuation rules. Developing language and vocabulary around text types (e.g. exposition, discussion, narrative, procedures, information reports and poetry) supports children’s ability to plan and review their writing. Strategies such as paragraph scaffolds (e.g., PEEL, PETAL), narrative and persuasive text scaffolds and editing checklists can further improve a student’s ability to write whole texts independently and efficiently.
4. Accommodations for students
In addition to providing targeted literacy skill support, speech pathologists may also recommend other strategies and accommodations for students with dysgraphia to ensure they can participate actively in the classroom. These accommodations may include:
- Allowing extra time for classwork and assessments
- Using text-to-speech functions so that students can efficiently convey their ideas
- Using visual schedules or checklists for planning and organising written work
Speech pathologists may also work with occupational therapists, who can provide support with letter formation and fine motor skills.
Interested in finding out more? Talk to a speech pathologist to see how we can help. Give us a call at (02) 72093838 or book a Free Initial Consultation at Talkshop Speech Pathology.
