Analyzing Typical Kindergarten Handwriting | Study Review

Takeaways

• A study by Nanho Vander Hart, Paula Fitzpatrick, and Cathryn Cortesa (July 2025) investigated the quality and effects of current handwriting curricula across four inner-city kindergarten classrooms.
• Using quantitative and qualitative methods, the study found that even teachers who used effective strategies could further improve their lessons with additional research-backed instruction.
• The study recommends that teachers include exercises that require students to write from memory, focus on writing for fluency, and encourage self-evaluation to identify areas for improvement.

A Review of Kindergarten Penmanship

Handwriting is essential in school for a variety of reasons, including developing fine motor skills, enhancing problem-solving skills, and demonstrating knowledge through tests and homework. While the advent of technology introduced computers into classrooms, most teachers still report focusing on typical kindergarten handwriting to promote efficiency and autonomy among students.

Even though many teachers have developed robust handwriting lessons and a kindergarten handwriting curriculum, up to 20% of students still struggle with letter formation and legibility. Additionally, this study noted that referrals for handwriting therapy have increased, underscoring the challenges students face in language learning, personal communication, and reading comprehension. 

Learn more about how “In-depth Analysis of Handwriting Curriculum and Instruction in Four Kindergarten Classrooms” by Nanho Vander Hart, Paula Fitzpatrick, and Cathryn Cortesa (July 2025) reviewed handwriting programs for kindergarten to suggest improvements when you keep reading below.

Is Handwriting in Kindergarten Important?

Recent studies indicate that a kindergarten handwriting curriculum is an essential part of learning, affecting many aspects of a child’s academic performance. From learning letters through a kinesthetic handwriting program to basic letter recognition through practicing typical kindergarten handwriting, lessons that focus on the handwritten word more effectively encouraged language learning and cognitive development than typing on a keyboard.

The study suggests that handwriting and typing may engage different parts of the brain, as fMRI data showed activation of distinct neural pathways during each activity. In fact, many other studies also report that students with other learning difficulties had deficiencies beyond the typical in kindergarten handwriting. Achievements that may be affected by a lack of handwriting programs for kindergarten include:

• Handwriting legibility
• Reading capabilities
• Diversity in vocabulary
• Writing speed
• Fine motor control
• Understanding grammar and spelling
• Self-expression and content generation

When students began to struggle with certain skills, they developed negative attitudes toward handwriting in kindergarten, exacerbating learning difficulties across the board.

Research-Backed Handwriting Interventions

To empower teachers with more effective strategies for a kindergarten handwriting curriculum, this study recommended a variety of techniques that can be adjusted for special education needs, including:

• Daily Lessons: Typical kindergarten handwriting can benefit from 75-100 minutes of practice per week. Short, frequent sessions with a handwriting practice workbook can make the biggest difference.

• Explicit Instruction: A systematic handwriting program for kindergarten where the teacher models each letter, provides students with effective patterns for letter formation, and provides practice time. Teachers reported that direct learning is more effective than incidental learning.

• Guided Practice: Teaching handwriting with verbal direction ensures that guided practice sessions with tracing and copying are successful. Visual cues, such as numbered arrows, also improve fluency and speed in typical kindergarten handwriting.

• Feedback & Assessments: Corrective feedback offers the most encouraging strategies for rewriting and continued practice. Teachers should monitor students as they write to give more specific corrections.

• Independent Practice: While guided practice is a great strategy for improving handwriting, students should also have independent practice time in their handwriting journals to set their own goals and assess their own progress.

• Integrating Lessons: A focus on handwriting alone doesn’t provide everything students need to succeed. Handwriting in kindergarten can be integrated with letter identification and naming, cutting with scissors practice sheets, drawing practice, and reading practice.

• Handwriting Resources: As students progress through the various skill levels of handwriting practice, they will use unique materials, including guided writing paper with lines of different sizes and widths, and writing instruments that fit their hands better.

When Should Handwriting Instruction Begin?

Research suggests that starting instruction during kindergarten is the ideal time for new learners. Many kindergarten students are ready to start learning about letter identification and formation at the beginning of the year. By the halfway point, they should be mastering full words and sentences. Typical kindergarten writing instruction should start as early as possible to prevent the development of bad habits.

Final Results

By the end of this study, research shows:

• Teachers spent about 50 minutes per week on handwriting, typically over three days. 
• They had handwriting lessons for more time over fewer days early in the year and less time over more days at the end of the year. 
• Many teachers integrated reading time and classroom observations with explicit handwriting instruction.
• All teachers reported using a commercially available kindergarten Handwriting Curriculum for instruction.
• Many classrooms also showed a 30-minute block of OT writing instruction once per week.

What is HWC?

The Handwriting Curriculum (HWC) is a multi-sensory approach to handwriting instruction, much like the teaching handwriting. Occupational therapists developed both programs and use a set of techniques that blend pre-writing activities with formal instruction to engage younger students.

Teachers can train in a variety of handwriting certification courses to enhance their classroom lessons, making their handwriting programs for kindergarten more effective.

Final Thoughts

For teachers to ensure quality instruction that goes beyond typical kindergarten handwriting, they need to deliver it through school-based best practices. Assessment tools are also an essential tool for objectively analyzing handwriting in kindergarten to accommodate learning difficulties and enhance instruction.

Find more guidance in our OT courses online for better ways to provide typical kindergarten handwriting instruction to students of all skill levels and learning capabilities.