ERIC Number: EJ1141326
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1941-1243
EISSN: N/A
Exploring the Participation of Children with Down Syndrome in Handwriting without Tears
Patton, Sandra; Hutton, Eve
Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools & Early Intervention, v10 n2 p171-184 2017
Children with Down Syndrome typically experience difficulties with attention to task and lack motivation when learning to write. This article provides an evaluation of the HWT (Handwriting Without Tears) method applied as an intervention to promote handwriting among children with Down Syndrome attending mainstream school in the Republic of Ireland. In the absence of standardized measures, a purpose-designed HWT group task participation scale and pre- and postintervention teacher/parent questionnaire were developed by the first author and used to investigate the participation of 40 children with Down Syndrome in HWT activities. Positive changes in participation in HWT activities were recorded in group data and in teacher/parent reports. Tentative findings suggest that hands-on multisensory learning approaches such as HWT may encourage children with Down Syndrome to participate in activities that promote handwriting skills. Further research and the development of robust measures to evaluate handwriting intervention for this population of children is required.
Descriptors: Down Syndrome, Attention, Writing (Composition), Student Motivation, Handwriting, Intervention, Foreign Countries, Questionnaires, Pretests Posttests, Parent Attitudes, Teacher Attitudes, Multisensory Learning, Mixed Methods Research, Elementary School Students, Teaching Methods
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Ireland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A