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Writing by hand sparks neuron explosion

Schreibmotorik Institut researches how handwriting promotes cognitive development

By Anja Kummerow

"Writing by hand is and remains irreplaceable"

Writing, colouring, scribbling – every time a child picks up a pencil, they are not only training their fine motor skills, but also improving their cognitive abilities. The Schreibmotorik Institut, an institute that promotes handwriting, recognises the impact and importance of writing by hand. However, this is something that should not only be started at school, but in day-care centres, too. After all, children can get the all-important feel for pencils at an early age just by scribbling and doodling.

Increasing numbers of people are using modern media. People are writing e-mails rather than letters and are typing their shopping lists into mobile phones. So is writing by hand dying out? "We at the Schreibmotorik Institut don’t think so," says Tal Hoffmann, Managing Director of the said institute for handwriting. Schools and other educational organisations are aware of the importance of writing by hand for the cognitive development of children and young people. The Schreibmotorik Institut does not regard this as conflicting with digitalisation. "Both are important and can be combined, for example by writing manually on digital media – using a tablet and stylus, for example."

The positive effects of handwriting are palpable

The correct way to hold a pencil is the basic requirement to make drawing and writing fun.

Young people are generally unable to explain the positive effects of writing by hand. But they do sense them. Intuitively. Many of them are picking up pens again in their free time – without being forced to! Trends such as hand lettering and journaling have been booming for years. Children, teenagers and adults are now realising that they can process experiences differently and remember things better when they write them down. Even in highly digitalised companies, many processes are first "thought out by hand", that is to say they’re put on paper with an actual pen.

"The fact that we use over 30 muscles and 17 joints in our arms and hands when we write helps us to understand and remember things, to structure our thoughts and generate new ideas," Hoffmann, a scientist, explains. While typing only activates one part of the brain, writing by hand causes a veritable explosion of neurons in our head each and every time. Because each letter is unique, our brain creates a separate memory track for it when we learn how to write, which is also activated when reading. To put it simply: writing by hand makes you smarter.

More and more children have problems

At the same time, however, children and teenagers are finding writing by hand increasingly difficult. "Every third girl and even more than every second boy in primary school in Germany has problems writing by hand," says Tal Hoffmann "Only two out of five secondary school pupils can write for 30 minutes or longer without complaints. Many of them complain of pain, cramps and signs of fatigue, which is why more and more children are already having to see an occupational therapist." These are the findings of the STEP surveys, which the Schreibmotorik Institut has conducted several times together with the Verband Bildung und Erziehung VBE, an educational institution, most recently in 2022. STEP stands for the German acronym for Study on the Development, Problems and Interventions in Handwriting.

Wanted: scribble mentors

The smiley on the finger joint signals when the pen is being gripped too tightly, which might lead to cramp. When it is, the smiley will stop smiling.

The Schreibmotorik Institut is breaking new ground to combat writing problems and the associated frustration from an early age. With its Kritzelpate, or scribble mentors, initiative, it aims to teach pre-school children the joy of writing or, to begin with at least, scribbling by means of simple exercises. They are supported by volunteer scribble mentors who teach the little ones how to use pen and paper in day-care centres. The Schreibmotorik Institut is currently looking for people in six regions throughout Germany – Nuremberg, Nürnberger Land, Munich, Regensburg, Weimar and Ludwigsfelde – who would like to get involved in social projects. This is why it is cooperating with volunteer agencies and other organisations. The current pilot project is receiving funding from the German Foundation for Civic Engagement and Volunteer Work until the end of 2024.

"Being able to write well by hand has three aspects: legibility, writing speed and stamina," Tal Hoffmann explains. Pens should be light and easy to hold. And a good sitting posture is also important: sitting upright, with your feet on the floor. "The Schreibmotorik Institut website also has some free exercises that we have evaluated from our research work. It’s all a matter of developing legible and fluent handwriting."

It all boils down to practice

Crumpling paper also promotes a child’s fine motor skills. The Schreibmotorik Institut has more exercises free of charge on its website.

Anyone can learn how to write by hand. It all boils down to practice. For children to write significantly better and faster, just one hour of writing motor skills training a week is enough. To help them do this, the Schreibmotorik Institut has evaluated a series of exercises from its research work and made them available free of charge on its website.

One thing the institute does not make is recommendations as to whether to use cursive or block letters or not. However, joining letters up fulfils a specific purpose. Writing by hand becomes faster and fluid and it follows a certain rhythm. "The process of automated writing – when you no longer have to think about how to write something – is only over by the age of 15 to 16 anyway. Only then can you concentrate on the actual content." Those who are good at writing by hand perform better at school and so have better prospects. "It’s no longer important that children stay on the line when writing or get the curve of a G perfect. Beautiful writing is out. What is – and remains – in is legibility."

Schreibmotorik Institut

The independent Schreibmotorik Institut, based in Heroldsberg, is Europe’s leading research institute on the subject of handwriting and writing motor skills from kindergarten age to professional life. The non-profit organisation has been transferring scientific knowledge into educational practice since 2012. Based on this, the institute develops teaching and learning materials, advises stakeholders in the field of education and organises seminars. It links the topic of developing handwriting in the educational sector with social and health issues.

About the author

Anja Kummerow spent more than 20 years reporting on Nuremberg’s exciting companies and many interesting trade fairs, like the Spielwarenmesse, in her role as business editor for the Nürnberger Zeitung newspaper. She has been a freelance journalist, speech writer and book author since 2020.

 

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