Shauna is a fourth grade student with dysgraphia who has not previously required special education services. To support her as writing tasks become more complex, which strategy should the social worker suggest?

• A. Allow Shauna to type or dictate all assignments and completely steer her away from handwriting practice
• B. Allow Shauna to type or dictate her written assignments so that she can practice her handwriting
• C. Require Shauna to hand write all assignments and monitor her progress
• D. Immediately refer Shauna for special education services because she will not be able to succeed with the more complex 4th grade work

Answer: (B)

When students have dysgraphia, the goal is to reduce the barriers that writing creates while still building the necessary writing skills. Allowing Shauna to type or dictate her assignments lowers the motor demands of handwriting, so she can focus on organizing ideas, planning, and expressing them clearly as tasks become more complex. This keeps her engaged with grade-level content in the general classroom and provides a pathway to strengthen handwriting skills through targeted practice outside of heavy writing load.

By using this accommodation, you’re not abandoning handwriting work; you’re enabling progress in the content while giving her a structured opportunity to practice handwriting separately, perhaps with OT support or short, focused exercises. This approach is preferable to forcing all work to be handwritten, which can hinder learning, or prematurely labeling her as needing special education without sufficient evidence.