Handwriting assessment of Franco-Quebec primary school–age students

Background : Reasons for referring school-age children to occupational therapy mainly relate to handwriting problems. However, there are no validated tools or reference values for assessing handwriting in francophone children in Canada. Purpose : This study aimed to adapt and validate the writing tasks described in an English Canadian handwriting assessment protocol and to develop reference values for handwriting speed for francophone children. Method : Three writing tasks from the Handwriting Assessment Protocol–2nd Edition (near-point and far-point copying and dictation) were adapted for Québec French children and administered to 141 Grade 1 (n = 73) and Grade 2 (n = 68) students. Findings : Reference values for handwriting speed were obtained for near point and far point copying tasks. Implications : This adapted protocol and these reference values for speed will improve occupational therapy handwriting assessments for the target population.