The Lost Skill: Why Handwriting Is Disappearing and What It Costs Our Kids

Most early childhood educators know handwriting matters. Fewer realize how much is lost when it disappears from the classroom. Research from Indiana University and the University of Washington has consistently shown that children who practice handwriting show stronger neurological activation in regions tied to reading and language development than children who rely on keyboards. Yet across the country, the skill is fading quietly — replaced by screen-based instruction, academic pressure pushed down into preschool, and a system that asks children to produce letters before they have the developmental readiness to form them.Holly Britton spent more than 25 years in classrooms watching this happen firsthand. After pivoting during COVID to build what she had been conceptualizing for years, she founded Squiggle Squad, a research-based, developmentally appropriate program built on a stroke-by-stroke approach that separates motor skill from letter learning. The results have been striking.In this conversation, Holly and Andy discuss the developmental window for handwriting instruction, how play-based classrooms can incorporate handwriting without abandoning their philosophy, and what the rise of AI and screens means for how young children learn to think. Holly also shares practical, no-cost starting points any teacher or parent can use right now."Handwriting, as innocuous as it seems, is deeply human. For us not to teach that human skill is, to me, as awful as not teaching them how to read."🔗 Learn more about Squiggle Squad: https://squigglesquad.com👉 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SquiggleSquad/👉 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/squigglesquadhandwriting/👉 Email Holly: holly@squigglesquad.comSubstack: https://hollyonhandwriting.substack.com/about📌 Subscribe for more early childhood education insights#handwriting #earlychildhoodeducation #braindevelopment #literacy #teachingtips #educationpodcast #learning----------------------------Early Childhood Chats is hosted by Andrew Roszak - JD, MPA, EMT-PExecutive Director at the Institute for Childhood Preparedness. The Institute for Childhood Preparedness is proud to use its decades of experience to offer comprehensive and expert disaster and emergency preparedness trainings live in-person, via webinar, and on-demand online. // Visit: https://www.childhoodpreparedness.org/ to find out more // Schedule your training today https://www.childhoodpreparedness.org/trainingFOLLOW UShttps://www.instagram.com/childhoodpreparedness/ https://www.facebook.com/ChildPreparedhttps://twitter.com/ChildPreparedhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/institute-for-childhood-preparedness© Institute for Childhood Preparedness 2026 all rights reserved