Correct hand position is essential for all students. An incorrect grasp can slow writing and cause wrist and finger pain. Pencil grips are designed to be slipped onto a pencil where the child normally holds it. Their unique shape correctly positions the child's fingers around the pencil. The child is trained to hold the pencil with a new grasp and keep his hand relaxed. There are many varieties of pencil grips available either online or at craft stores.
Lined paper of varying ruled sizes gives students lots of space to practice manuscript and cursive handwriting. Ruled sheets with slanted lines help students to slant their handwriting at the correct angle. Paper templates are available free online; they come in a variety of styles. Story paper has a blank section at the top for a picture and lines below for a description of the picture. This paper is especially good for young children who use drawing as a way to communicate before they can write words independently.
Graphic organizers teach students to record research information and creative ideas for writing projects. Use these forms in before-writing activities to help students organize their thoughts and flesh-out details. A variety of organizer formats can be found free online and adapted for many types of writing assignments.
If your student's creative well runs dry, story starters will get the creative juices flowing. Sometimes called "story frames," or "writing prompts," this is a collection of phrases that suggest a character, setting, situation and problem as a starting place to write a story. You can change any of the components to add variety to assignments. Sets of story starters are available commercially or through online educational sites, or you can create your own.
All writers need to use a variety of resources to broaden their knowledge and verify their information. Students should have access to a dictionary, a thesaurus and a word-wall of class vocabulary words. The authors of "Writing as Learning: A Content-based Approach" also suggest providing a collection of magazines, folk and fairy tale anthologies, globes, maps and pictures to provide a creative environment.
Older elementary students who are writing several paragraphs are ready to learn basic word processing. Basic formatting and spell-checking skills will help them revise draft copies and prepare work for presentation. Foundational word processing skills will also prepare a student for more advanced work in middle school.