Mom of soon to be 2nd grader crashing with a question

Hi
My son just finished 1st grade and he did great all year in all subjects except - his handwriting is atrocious. I know he's only 6 1/2 but it's really awful. And he just forgets to capitalize words endlessly. His grammar & punctuation are terrific - but the handwriting So I want to work on it with him over the summer. He's so stubborn though that me just trying to get him to write neater is not going to motivate him. Any suggestions from teachers in the lower grades on how to help him take more care with his penmanship?

TIA

Re: Mom of soon to be 2nd grader crashing with a question

Just a few thoughts...

pencil grips might help
handwriting books (available at barnes and nobles)
dotted letter stamps are helpful. They are letter stamps but the letters are dotted so the children trace them.

It could also be more deep rooted. What has his teacher said over the year? Has she mentioned occupational therapy? Try having him write on a slant board. You can totally make this using a 3 inch binder and attaching a clip to it so that it looks like a clip board but at an incline. You can also place a 4-5 inch empty 3-ring binder on the desk for incline. Position the binder with the rings toward the top of the desk and the slant toward the child. Then rotate the binder to a 45-degree angle

Also, try this website.
handwriting

Re: Mom of soon to be 2nd grader crashing with a question

Some kids have poor handwriting as a result of fine motor difficulties. Playing games like pick up sticks, solving mazes, threading beads, weaving, drawing and painting, creating things out of clay/playdough, and working with tiny legos will help build fine motor skills. Handwriting can, as a result, improve.