Children should hold their pencil with their thumb, index finger, and middle fingers (tripod grasp).  The tips of the thumb and index finger should touch so that they form an open circle in the webspace of the hand.  The middle finger should rest below the writing implement.  The ring and little fingers should be tucked in the palm out so they are out of the way.

 

•      Children should be encouraged to hold the pencil on the bottom portion on the paint of the pencil or the black squiggly lines of a crayon.  Wrapping a small rubber band on the bottom tip of the pencil is a good visual cue for the child to hold the pencil. 

•      Use broken crayons or small pieces of chalk when coloring and drawing. 

•      Place a pencil gripper on the pencil.  Your child's therapist can help you find the most appropriate gripper for your child.

•      Children should be encouraged to initially pick up the writing implement and correctly place it in the hand.  Next, they should be encouraged to write their name using the appropriate grasp pattern.  Then, they should progress to holding the implement correctly for longer periods of time.

 

Helpful activities to encourage tripod grasp:

•      Use a spray bottle to wash off things, ex: paint, chalk on sidewalk, shaving cream on shower wall, or squirt into a pan of soap suds to make more bubbles.  Use thumb, index, and middle fingers on the trigger of the bottle.

•      Use spring-type clothespins to pick up objects.

•      Sort items with tweezers.

•      Roll small pieces of clay or crumbled paper with only thumb, index, and middle fingers.  Keep ring and little (pinky) fingers tucked away.

•      Pinch small objects using thumb and index finger ("pinchers") and/or thumb, index, and middle fingers ("writing fingers").  Keep ring and little fingers tucked away.