Study: Good Handwriting Linked To Better Grades

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Does your child have nice penmanship? Easy to read, neat handwriting may mean better grades in school, according to a Florida International University professor's research.

Laura Dinehart, an early childhood professor, examined the handwriting of 3,000 preschool students in Miami-Dade County.

"We found that kids that had those skills early on, were better at those skills early on, demonstrated better academic performance once they entered second grade," Dinehart said.

Dinehart, an early childhood education professor at FIU, focused her study on students from low-income households.

Dinehart's research found that students with better handwriting scored higher on standardized tests and received better grades in both reading and math.

The professor's research also found that early-childhood education should focus on fine-motor skills and parents have a role to play as well.

"Parents should be providing kids with opportunities to engage in writing perhaps even in art," Dinehart said. "We haven't looked at how much this is related to just being able to draw, for instance, and learning some basics about drawing. So this may enhance parents' desires to put their kids in art, or other fine-motor activities."

Activities that help, Dinehart believes, can be fun—like coloring—as preschoolers like to see their work on paper.

Professor Dinehart is also looking at how childrens' ability to copy shapes improves their ability to "manage and control their behavior."

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