Writing by hand sharpens human brain

Technology has made writing by hand a largely unnecessary act. But according to different studies, there are brain-friendly benefits of writing out letters, notes, essays, solving math problems, drawing / painting etc by hand that they can’t get from typing / tapping.

Writing by hand really connects with the figures & words and allows brain to focus on them, understand them, and learn from them.

There are plenty of reason to get back to writing by hand and help their brain!!!!

This is true for an adult too.

Handwriting improves thinking itself. Students taking notes on a digital device will capture a lot of what is said in a lecture, but they will be less likely to remember what they heard. Students writing their notes by hand tend to better memorize what they are taught. Using a good old pen will prepare students more efficiently for many other learnings and achievements. Handwriting Benefits for Children (and adults also)

• Increases learning comprehension
• Taking notes on a laptop may be a lot faster — but research proves that those who take notes by hand actually remember more of the information than those who don’t.
• One study found that students who took notes by hand had a greater understanding of a lesson than those who took notes on a computer — even though they were able to type out more information.

• Writing requires that students use more of their motor skills, and a collection of links around their brain called the “reading circuit.”
• This activates more parts of their brain than typing ever could.

• One uses different sides of the brain, whether being calculative or artistic.
• But writing by hand, especially in cursive, actually taps into both sides of the brain, because of its loopy, artistic nature.
• How deeply one tap into each side of the brain is different for each individual, but stimulating either side with writing is extremely beneficial for artistic/problem-solving abilities.
• Sharpens the brain and helps us learn
• Sequential hand movements, like those used in handwriting, activate large regions of the brain responsible for thinking, language, healing and working memory.

• Since writing puts to work more parts of students mind than typing, it encourages more creativity
• There are also subtle aspects of writing by hand that are more artistic than typing because each one’s handwriting is completely their own.
• This gives one own writing identity, similar to an artist who has their own unique medium!
• Sharpens the brain and helps us learn
• Sequential hand movements, like those used in handwriting, activate large regions of the brain responsible for thinking, language, healing and working memory.

• Typing on a computer means that students are inches away from the endlessly entertaining Internet.
• That it is much easier to get distracted, instead of getting any typing done.
• If students need to tame their short attention span, writing by hand helps keep them focused.

• Writing can actually calm ones brain down, which makes it a perfect winding-down activity at night.
• According to graphologist and handwriting expert Dr. Marc Seifer, “Jotting down a sentence like, ‘I will be more peaceful’ at least 20 times per day can actually have an impact, especially on those with attention deficit disorder.”
• It also helps keep students more focused, which will naturally un-frazzle their brain from distractions.

• When one is feeling sad or stressed, sometimes materializing thoughts by writing them out can be an amazing therapy.
• Writing by hand, particularly in cursive, is rhythmic, so it helps students erratic thoughts get in a calming flow.
• And since students connect to words more when they write them out, they can also process a problem more easily when they put it to paper.
• Combats Dyslexia - According to a former teacher and language specialist, cursive can help combat dyslexia by improving brain and memory functions.

Science behind Handwriting

Given the choice to take notes by hand or on a computer, nowadays, many students prefer the latter. This has been encouraged by the parents and teachers catalysed by emerging EduTech companies. But even if technology offers a lot of benefits for students, this is probably not the best option. In the matter of learning, old-fashioned writing by hand is much more useful than the immediate convenience of a keyboard. But what are the specific advantages of writing with a pencil or a pen?

Handwriting improves thinking itself. Students taking notes on a digital device will capture a lot of what is said in a lecture, but they will be less likely to remember what they heard. Students writing their notes by hand tend to better memorize what they are taught.

Using a good old pen will prepare students more efficiently for many other learnings and achievements.

First, writing by hand helps greatly in the development of small motor skills and eye-hand coordination. Writing improves language processing skills like reading and writing. While typing a text is certainly easier than writing it by hand, handwriting slows down positively the thinking process and increases the ability to process language, allowing the students to think deeper about vocabulary and spelling and how to structure sentences and whole texts.

Practice, handwriting provides more confidence, better dexterity, improved recall, and memory; and it can even help those students suffering from disabilities like ADD and Dyslexia.

The importance of writing in the mathematics classroom cannot be overemphasized. In the process of writing, students clarify their own understanding of mathematics and hone their communication skills. They are able to organize their ideas and thoughts more logically and structure their conclusions in a more coherent way.

Structure for math practice has 3 components that can be practiced regularly daily:

1. Read to Self,

2. Listen to Reading (Dictation),

3. Write what has been memorised and understood.

Repeat, Repeat & Repeat with different set of problems.

During the school years, especially from ages 8-18, is a critical time during which the brain is developing the individual's executive functions.

During Math Writing, students express and articulate their thinking and understanding of a math problem or math concept by handwritten practice using pictures, numbers, charts, graphs, and words. Writing can help the brain to develop the logical functions required for successful math and science learning. When it comes to math and science, writing brings more than literacy and communication advantages. The practice of writing can enhance the brain's intake, processing, retaining, and retrieving of information.

Through writing students can express creative hypotheses, alternative perspectives, and concerns about their understanding. Furthermore, students have the chance to communicate using their own words. They build communication skills they will surely use in their collaborations now and in the future science and math communities they will enter.

Writing can also reduce the neural processing blockades that result from the stress of boredom which is the most frequent reason for high school dropouts. We know that students are engaged when material is personally relevant, and connects to real world issues and problems. And when this happens, there is increased information flow through the attention and emotional filters to the higher processing prefrontal cortex.

Writing can increase both personal relevance and confidence. Personal relevance comes when students can write for creativity and personal expression. Even when the facts of the math or science are not debatable, individual responses to the information are appropriate writing topics.

When writing is incorporated in learning and assessment, there is increased opportunity to produce the ideal situation for active, attentive learning with collaboration, revision, and metacognition through personalization, and creativity.

Reminding students of previous successes promotes confidence, as does providing them the opportunity to recognize their own progress over time. One way to help them recognize their progress is through their written assessments: For instance, along with the content you're assessing, you can also have students write their responses to both the learning itself and to recognition of their progress. These can be maintained in computer files or portfolios and reviewed as evidence of successful, incremental progress with student opportunities for metacognition about strategies used for success.

Writing "Sprouts" Conceptual Brain Networks

The construction of conceptual memory networks builds the most valuable neural architecture a brain owner can have. These networks serve as "nets" to catch and hold new input with similar patterns, and "work" when activated for creative transfer -- use of the information learned in one context for application in a new context.

Concept networks are the valuable tools the brain uses in the highest orders of thinking. When the brain seeks to predict the best response, answer, solution to a problem or make a choice, the executive function control networks in the prefrontal cortex send out messages to the memory association areas, such as the hippocampus and memory storing cortex of each hemisphere. These messages activate stored prior knowledge memories that relate to the new situation. The more extensive the brain's collection of memory networks, the more successful it will be in activating the best prior knowledge to predict the best responses, answers, and choices for any new situation. The greater the links and cross-connections among networks of stored information, the greater a person's access to multiple storage centres of background knowledge to use in response to the new problem or opportunity.

The neural activity or mental manipulation that transforms formulas, procedures, graphs, and statistical analyses into words represents the brain's recognition of patterns. When this is also done in writing, the facts, procedures, and observations are processed symbolically in the writing process -- giving the memory another storage modality and truly illuminating the patterns for the brain to follow as it adds new learning to existing concept networks.