5 Benefits of a Slant Board for Writing

Affiliate and Referral links are used below to promote products I love and recommend. I receive a commission on any purchases made through these links. Please see my disclosure policy for more details. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

A common item you may see in many Occupational Therapy sessions is a slant board for handwriting tasks. But why would you use a slant board and what are the benefits of a slant board for writing? Let's look at a few reasons why an OT may suggest using a slant board for writing.

5 benefits of using a slant board for writing with kids.

 

This is a sponsored conversation on behalf of Adapt Ease, a company providing Occupational Therapy tools and products. I was provided monetary compensation for writing this post as well as a free slant board to review. 

5 Benefits of a Slant Board for Writing

When a child is having problems with handwriting, one thing that Occupational Therapists will look at is positioning and how it is affecting the child's handwriting. Often if a child is slouching this affects the shoulder and arm positioning which will affect their handwriting. A slant board can help with positioning in the following ways:

  • The 3 Points of Positioning –  A child sitting at a desk should be sitting with 3 points of a 90-degree angle: Feet planted flat on the ground, ankles at a 90-degree angle, knees bent at 90 degrees; sitting upright with the hips and torso at a 90-degree angle. When a child is slouching, using a slanted board at a 22-degree angle can assist with this positioning. Also remember if your child's feet are not touching the floor, use a stack of books or a step stool to help get their knees and feet at that 90-degree angle.
  • Wrist Extension for Pencil GraspPencil grasp is another important factor in handwriting. In order to produce legible written work, a student needs to be able to move their wrist and elbow in a fluid motion. The wrist is also in an extended or up-bent position. The slant board encourages this wrist extension during writing.
  • Visual Tracking during Writing and Reading Tasks – Reading at an angle may reduce strain on the eyes. This is beneficial as your child is reading what they wrote during a writing assignment, all of the text is on the same plane.
  • Increases Paper Stability – Often times you will notice a child struggling to keep their paper still while writing. This requires good bilateral coordination skills in order to hold the paper still with the non-dominate hand while writing with the dominant hand. If your child struggles with bilateral coordination skills, having a slanted writing surface with a clip to hold the paper allows them to concentrate on the writing task and not be distracted with keeping their paper still.
  • Promotes Good Shoulder and Wrist Positioning for Handwriting – As mentioned above, not only does it help with proper ankle, knee, and hip positioning (see the 3 Points of Positioning), keeping the upper body in a more upright position allows for good positioning of the shoulder and elbow for handwriting. A child who is slouched over while writing will not produce legible work and often this is caused by fatigue because of poor core muscle strength. While working on increasing core muscle strength, using the slant board for writing can help promote good upper body positioning for handwriting tasks.

An added bonus on using a slant board is for reading activities. While not necessarily OT related, the benefits of using a slant board for reading include placing the text closer to the eyes which also helps with scanning and visual motor skills during reading. It also encourages better posture during reading activities, particularly when reading at a desk in a classroom setting.

The Slant Board from Adapt Ease

If you are looking for a quality slant board to try with your child, Adapt Ease offers a great slant board with a sturdy clipboard for handwriting. It provides an ergonomic surface, a sturdy clip that can hold up to 200 pages or most early learning books, along with crack resistant acrylic construction for on the go learning. Plus, it's made right here in the USA!

I want to thank Adapt Ease for sponsoring today's post and for offering such a great slant board product for parents, teachers, and therapists to use with their children.

Need more handwriting resources? Check out my Handwriting Pinterest board.

Follow Heather | Growing Hands-On Kids's board Handwriting Activities on Pinterest.
Resources:

Benefits of a Slant Board; Lauren Weichman, OTR/L –  North Shore Pediatric Therapy

Handwriting Recommendations – Center of Development Pediatric Therapists

Pain in the Classroom: Ergonomics of the Classroom Desk: Eric Steinman – Care2 Living

Do We Harm Our Children by Ignoring Steinman and the Slant Board?: Greg Mischio – The Vision Therapy Center Inc.

Why Your Child Should Use a Slant Board for Writing: Greg Mischio – The Vision Therapy Center Inc.

You May Also Like:

Foundational Skills Needed for Handwriting Mechanics.

Heather Greutman, COTA

Heather Greutman is a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant with experience in school-based OT services for preschool through high school. She uses her background to share child development tips, tools, and strategies for parents, educators, and therapists. She is the author of many ebooks including The Basics of Fine Motor Skills, and Basics of Pre-Writing Skills, and co-author of Sensory Processing Explained: A Handbook for Parents and Educators.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

4 Comments

  1. Reena D'Alessandro, OT says:

    Hi Heather,

    Nice Post. Thanks for sharing. Your tips are excellent and useful for kids’ development. I have also visited your link on Amazon to find more about Adopt-ease and slant board. Adopt-Ease seems to have many useful motor and sensory products for kids. I aim to order few including slant board for my kid. The board also looks ideal for my child because she always feels uncomfortable slouching on the desk and writing.

  2. It’s amazing the difference small adjustments can make. I like how you mention that a slant board can help with visual tracking. My niece had been struggling with writing, and I think this might help her. Would this also be helpful to do while she is reading books? Thanks for sharing these great tips!

  3. Virginia Banks says:

    Where can I order the slant board from?

CONTENT DISCLAIMER: Heather Greutman is a Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant.
All information on the Website is for informational purposes only and is not a replacement for medical advice from a physician or your pediatrician. Please consult with a medical professional if you suspect any medical or developmental issues with your child. The information on the Websites does not replace the relationship between therapist and client in a one-on-one treatment session with an individualized treatment plan based on their professional evaluation. The information provided on the Website is provided “as is” without any representations or warranties, express or implied.

Do not rely on the information on the Website as an alternative to advice from your medical professional or healthcare provider. You should never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment as a result of any information provided on the Website. All medical information on the Website is for informational purposes only.

All activities outlined on the Website are designed for completion with adult supervision. Please use your own judgment with your child and do not provide objects that could pose a choking hazard to young children. Never leave a child unattended during these activities. Please be aware of and follow all age recommendations on all products used in these activities. Growing Hands-On Kids is not liable for any injury when replicating any of the activities found on this blog.

YOUR RESPONSIBILITY The Website was developed strictly for informational purposes. You understand and agree that you are fully responsible for your use of the information provided on the Website. Growing Hands-On Kids makes no representations, warranties, or guarantees. You understand that results may vary from person to person. Growing Hands-On Kids assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions that may appear on the Website.