Q: My 7 year old really has struggled in handwriting this year

He complains writing hurts his hand.  You mentioned a condition where the physical nature of writing by hand is difficulty–I think you said your son’s writing was aiding by switching to keyboarding. Could you send me the name of the condition or a link to more information about this.

A: The condition is called dyspraxia in the rest of the world and dysgraphia in the US – You should be able to find lots of information about it on the web. The general web site is: http://www.dyspraxia.info/ for dyspraxia which is the overall condition. I have the same issue as my son, but neither of us has all of the symptoms listed on that site. You may also find information at: http://www.ncld.org/ld-basics/ld-aamp-language/writing/dysgraphia or at http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/dysgraphia/dysgraphia.htm
this site has practical information that will help your son in class: http://www.ldinfo.com/dysgraphia.htm
What my son says really helped him was learning that it was no different than being nearsighted and having to wear glasses – it is just a problem that needs some understanding about the limitations that a child has. Your son does need to learn to write but his teachers need to understand that if they want anything lengthy from him, he should be allowed to do that on a word processor. As the world gets more comfortable with word processors, we are seeing a shift to tablets which may create real problems for those of us with dysgraphia, just to let you know what may be coming up and why your son needs to learn to write even though using a computer will be easier for long assignments.
Hope this helps, let me know if you need any other information.