Did you know... there are big differences that happen in the brain while writing as opposed to typing on a keyboard?
There have been studies on what goes on in the brain while writing by hand as opposed to typing, and the differences are amazing!
Writing something down actually helps you remember it! Students who take notes by hand are more likely to remember what they're learning as opposed to typing notes. The actual formation of letters activates parts of the brain that typing just doesn't activate!
Writing becomes more holistic when writing by hand. It involves several different movements in the hands, touching different parts of the brain, rather than just pressing a button on a keyboard.
Most people can type almost as fast as they can talk. That means if they're taking notes, they'll be typing pretty much everything they hear. If they're taking notes by hand, they can't write down everything, so they need to think about what the key information is, and how to quickly paraphrase what they're hearing. This causes more thinking, engaging the brain rather than just typing whatever they hear!
Seriously, the physical act of writing activates parts of the frontal lobe, which is responsible for expressive language and for managing higher level executive functions. It should be an active part of the students' day, shouldn't it?
Various studies have shown that children who learn to write by hand also learn to read faster and show more creativity. Writing by hand not only increases focus, but encourages writers to use more interesting vocabulary and write more adventurous stories.
This doesn't mean give up all the electronics! They clearly have their place in the classroom and in the workplace!
Despite the advantages of writing by hand, working on a keyboard is also a skill that needs to be developed and strengthened. They still need to be able to type efficiently and compose at the computer. It's not going away!
This skill won't go away either. Plus, the kiddos absolutely LOVE learning cursive writing! Even though many districts are phasing out instruction in cursive, they can learn it on their own using this self-directed collection:
Here are links to a couple of articles for more information:
Plus here's one of my own that might interest you!
The brain is a fascinating thing, isn't it?
