Mirror writing or mirror handwriting is a phenomenon in which a person writes from right to left. What to do if it is more convenient for a child to write differently from the usual Cyrillic alphabet, and the letters themselves look as if they were written in a mirror image? If you notice a similar writing disorder in your child, help him cope with this problem. In this article we will answer the following questions: what is mirror writing, the reasons for the development of this disorder, and how you can help your child learn to write correctly.
Why does a child write numbers and letters in mirror image: reasons
What causes mirror writing to appear in children? The study of this phenomenon is carried out taking into account special samples: mirror writing is considered as dysgraphia, and the phenomenon of right-handers with a “writing” right hand is also highlighted.
- Mirror handwriting (letters and numbers are written from right to left) is observed with a low level of development of spatial thinking in relation to one’s own body.
Entries in the diary of Leonardo da Vinci
- Children with pronounced mirror handwriting make mistakes when determining sides: where is the right and where is the left, they cannot indicate which arm or leg is which.
- The perception of the visual series and its generalization is formed insufficiently.
- Among the reasons for “Leonardo’s handwriting,” experts point out the too rapid mastery of the technique of writing with printed characters.
- Children may not grasp the connection between a letter symbol and its meaning or may not grasp the relationship to an insufficient extent.
Dysgraphia is observed in primary school children
Leonardo da Vinci wrote mirror images in numerous diaries, as evidenced by recent research. In honor of the genius, this phenomenon acquired the name “Leonardo’s handwriting.” This type of writing is observed in children with typical development.
Children who have dysgraphia are distinguished by a special perception of a 3D three-dimensional image (three-dimensional) - when the right or left fields of central or peripheral vision record space in a distorted version.
- The “defect window” includes a nearby 3D image, namely a distance of up to 30-40 cm. Once in this area, the picture is displayed as if in reverse perspective.
- Here the image is reversed.
Mirror writing in children
- A child who experiences the phenomenon of mirror writing has no choice but to write graphic symbols that fall on the area of the “defect window” the way he sees them, namely, upside down in a mirror.
- Dysgraphia can also be observed in children without a pronounced impairment in the perception of 3D volumetric space. This may be a disturbance in the perception of images at a short distance. As for long distances, perception disturbances may not be observed here.
The localization of reverse perspective can be compared to a kind of “window”. In this area lies the defect of the near 3D space, which is called in the scientific community “Lobachevsky space”.
Dysgraphia in children
Symbols and numbers, entering Lobachevsky's space, turn out to be mirror-inverted both in the vertical and horizontal directions. Mirror handwriting is observed when a letter or number gets into the defect area during writing. The child simply perceives the image “as he sees it.”
- The presence of such mechanisms that contribute to the occurrence of dysgraphia at the physiological level in a child is a diagnostic criterion.
Retraining a left-handed child to write with his right hand is one of the causes of dysgraphia
- They are detected as a change in perception, and are markers of the effectiveness of psychophysiological or neuropsychological correction.
- A child with a pronounced pathognomonic phenomenon, when copying text from a book or magazine, makes a few mirror errors. However, when trying to write from memory, he “reverses” the alphabetic and numeric characters.
- The phenomenon of mirror handwriting appears at the stage of mastering the skill of writing along with other errors against the background of the child’s normal development.
In a child with dysgraphia, the connection between the hemispheres of the brain is insufficiently formed
What are the reasons why a child mirrors (writes in a mirror)?
- One of the reasons is psychological factors. Right-handedness, left-handedness, and gender have an influence.
- Previously written texts can also cause mirror spelling. The page from which the child began to write the text, the place on the page lead to the appearance of “Leonardo’s handwriting.”
An example of mirror handwriting in a child
Among the factors of optical dysgraphia are the following:
- Analysis of visual images and space is formed insufficiently (the child has a impaired understanding of the shape and size of surrounding objects, what place they occupy relative to other things and relative to each other).
- Visual analysis and synthesis does not provide a complete spatial picture.
- Visible images of letters are not differentiated. Letter gnosis – visual perception and recognition of letter and digital meanings – is not fully formed.
Which children are at risk for mirror writing?
- “Leonardo's handwriting” is discovered in children aged 6-7 years in the process of mastering writing skills.
- Children of preschool age who have not sufficiently acquired information about the size and shape of surrounding things.
- Children who have difficulty determining the spatial arrangement of things.
- Primary school children who make mistakes when using prepositions to indicate the location (location) of objects in space, or who do not know the meaning of these prepositions.
- Children whose working hand is their left, but are “retrained” to write with their right hand. Such students reproduce lines directed from right to left, their letters and numbers are directed from bottom to top.
Mirror writing is found in children 6-7 years old
conclusions
Normally, mirror writing of numbers and letters should be taught in elementary school. If this does not happen, the violation becomes persistent. A fixed skill distorts thinking, which negatively affects the mental abilities and academic performance of schoolchildren. Doctors and parents themselves can help children. Having noticed deviations, begin corrective exercises. If you can't cope, contact a specialist. The main thing is not to leave mistakes in writing letters and numbers unattended and hope that everything will improve with age.
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How to correct mirror spelling in children: tips
How to identify in time the prerequisites for the emergence of “Leonardo’s handwriting”?
- Place two pens or sticks in front of the child: place one vertically in front of you. The other hand is placed on the right at a right angle to the first.
- Invite your child to repeat your actions with other sticks. He can attach a second pen or stick to the vertically located “mirror” one on the left.
- This happens when transferring three-dimensional images, simple shapes, and figures onto paper. The child copies the sample he sees, but transfers it to paper in a mirror image.
- If the mirror handwriting appears partially, then this indicates an unsystematic, random manifestation of the phenomenon. We are talking about writing individual letters in mirror image.
The phenomenon of dysgraphia in children
Therefore, it makes no sense to correct Leonardo’s “handwriting”, which occurs in the case of writing some letters. We need to get rid of the problem as a whole.
Tips for eliminating mirror spelling:
- Before starting work on correcting mirror handwriting, it is necessary to carry out a preparatory stage. The purpose of the preliminary work is to teach the child the skill of orientation in space, relative to himself, on a sheet of paper.
- The child needs to learn where the right side is and where the left side is, to know which side a certain part of the body is on.
- After acquiring a stable skill in recognizing the right and left sides, you can move on to the next stage: developing the skill of accurately navigating your own body. Invite the child to show his left ear, right hand, right leg, left cheek.
- Taking into account the right and left sides, the child must learn to navigate the surrounding space. The adult’s task at this stage will be to explain the location of objects relative to his body, relative to other objects: for example, what is closer to the right hand is on the right, objects on the left hand are on the left.
- The same exercises are carried out regarding the location of the notebook in relation to the magazine or book. After mastering the peculiarities of the spatial arrangement of things, the child will understand whether a line should be drawn to the right or left of the vertical stick, and on which side to write an oval in the letter “u”.
Causes of dysgraphia
Writing exercises
The effectiveness of classes to correct mirror handwriting depends on the sequence. It is not necessary to train the technique of performing all elements at once. It is difficult for a child to perceive and remember a large amount of information. It will be more effective to work on errors by correcting 1-2 letters and numbers per day.
Don't complicate the lessons by introducing syllables and whole sentences. You need to start with alphabetic characters. There are 33 of them in the Russian alphabet and not all of them cause difficulties. To make the task easier, parents should know which letters are most likely to be misspelled. Let's highlight 3 groups:
- The letters A, D, F, M, N, O, P, T, F, X, W are symmetrical and cannot be written in mirror images. This letter series, as well as the numbers 0 and 8, can be immediately excluded.
- Letters turned to the left (3, L, U, Ch, E, Z) are called hooligans by speech therapists. They are the ones who are most often written in the wrong direction. Auditory and visual memory can help here. Children just need to remember and memorize them until they become automatic.
- When working with the letters B, V, G, E, I, K, R, S, Ts, Ш, ы, ь, ъ, explain in detail the correct spelling. Let the child tell what elements the letter consists of and where it is directed (right or left). Copywriting lessons are very effective when it is possible to trace the finished contours of individual elements of letter characters. During classes, carefully monitor the process, point out incorrect actions and correct errors immediately.
Similar work is done with numbers. Specularity in mathematics manifests itself clearly; almost all numbers can be written in a distorted form. It is very good to practice correct spelling using checkered notebooks. The child must learn to separate the required number of cells up, down, right and left. You can start writing numbers fully after mastering individual elements (sticks, circles, oblique lines, etc.).
Once you are sure that your child is writing correctly, continue to monitor his written work. The habit of writing in a mirror image may return. For prevention, check the direction of the letter and correct errors in a timely manner.
How to correct mirror spelling of letters and numbers in children: exercises
Exercises for correcting “mirror” writing:
- Prepare cards, stencils, cubes for the child to reproduce standard letters.
- While writing, invite the child to run his finger along the letter, along the line of the letter.
- Invite the child to trace the letter with his finger in the air, accompanying him with his eyes and pronouncing it.
- Write graphic dictations: dash, dot, cell down, two cells up, four cells to the right, cell up, two cells to the right).
- Develop the ability to remember visual images. Repeat various movements, reproduce series of speeches (months, days of the week).
- Develop fine motor skills of the hands by using techniques such as massage, self-massage of the fingers, finger games, modeling with plasticine, tracing, shading pictures.
- Invite the child to model letters from sticks, from elements of other letters: the letter “H” can be transformed into the letter “P” by moving one stick. Name or show letters that consist of three elements (ZH, I, Y, Z), or two (U, CH, T). Reconstruct a letter from several elements - an oval, a semi-oval, a long or short stick.
