Study: Autistic teens more likely to struggle with handwriting

By Staff Writer

A new study shows that poor handwriting among kids who have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) tends to persist well into their teenage years.

The research, which was published in the journal Neurology, was conducted by officials at the Kennedy Krieger Institute in Baltimore. Children ages 12 to 16 were administered handwriting tests that measured five skills: legibility, form, alignment, size and spacing. The average score for autistic kids was 167 out of 204 points, compared to the average score of 183 for children who did not have the learning disorder.

The study also tested the teens' motor skills, including balance and timed movements. Researchers found that children with an ASD were more likely to have motor skill impairments, but those problems were not associated with poor handwriting. However, their ability to reason through problems with nonverbal material - also known as perceptual reasoning - does have an impact on writing.

Methods that can help children with an ASD include special pencil grippers, lined paper, as well as training exercises to improve posture and coordination.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that an average of one in 110 children in the U.S. have an ASD.