Technology traces on children handwriting

Handwriting in educational settings has seen changes in practice, culturally and at social level. In particular, the practice of handwriting is less necessary in daily life because it has been replaced by other means of communication for sending messages, making appointments, expressing feelings etc. To this should be added the effects of the reduction of the ability to coordinate perception and mobility which corresponds to the substitution of handwriting with the use of a keyboard. Nulla dies sine linea project, coordinated by Benedetto Vertecchi and developed at LPS – Laboratory for Experimental Research – Università di Roma TRE, aims at verifying handwriting effects in the learning processes of a group of approximately 380 primary school children based in Rome and its district (grade III, IV and V). In four months, the teachers asked pupils on a daily basis to write a text of four lines in III grade, five lines in IV grade and six lines in the V grade. First results highlight mainly a strong support in the motivational dimension, which teachers note in everyday practice when they inform pupils about the title of the daily composition they have to write: pupils participate actively, enjoy it and are involved and eager to express themselves in writing.The main hypotheses formulated are the following: • that a correlation exists between the practice of handwriting and the quality of the text produced; • that handwriting corresponds to a gratifying brain activity; • that when the ability to handwrite grows, there is a corresponding diminution of the difficulties which are often interpreted as manifestations of a mental health disorder; • that to the practice of handwriting corresponds an overall increase of literal skills.