by Perry McCarney

Created on: September 11, 2008   Last Updated: November 19, 2010

The ability to write, whether basically, capably, comprehensively or even poetically, varies across the spectrum of humanity. Normally the ability is dependent on interest, creativity and encouragement. Unfortunately, in many parts of the world, poor writing ability is due to inferior or non-existent schooling, rather than a lack of aptitude. But for some, difficulty in learning to write, whether that's just a basic ability or the creative expression of a beauty they might otherwise share with the world, is intrinsic rather than a matter of desire or educational availability. The common term used to describe this is dysgraphia; "dys-" meaning difficulty and "-graphia" meaning to visually represent, though generally referred to as a "difficulty in writing". More severe cases may be called agraphia, an inability to visually represent or write at all.

While dysgraphia is an inability to write decipherably, it does not necessarily indicate an equivalent difficulty in reading (dyslexia) although the two do often occur together. It also offers no relevance towards the intelligence of the sufferer. Dysgraphia is displayed in a number of ways. Sufferers seem to have particular difficulty with the order of letters in the middle of words, mixing them randomly while getting the the initial and final letters correct. Mixing uppercase and lowercase letters within words is also a frequent symptom. Children suffering from dysgraphia often write using letters of variable, disproportionate sizes and with irregular spacing.

Dysgraphia may often be associated with impaired hearing, but can also occur due to neurological problems that are not yet fully understood in a child with no visual or hearing difficulties. Such neurological problems may be congenital (from birth) or due to brain trauma from physical injury to the brain. Adults that develop dysgraphia, who have previously been capable writers, have almost always suffered from a head injury (trauma), disease or stroke affecting brain function.

Dysgraphia, particularly in children, is categorized as a learning disability. Learning disabilities are defined as a varied group of disorders that significantly impact the sufferer in the acquisition and use of listening, speaking, reading, writing, mathematical and/or reasoning abilities.

Whether from birth or induced through injury, dysgraphia can lead to considerable problems for the sufferer, especially if not recognized and diagnosed as early as possible. Testing for any neurological

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