I can hold my pencil in a comfy tripod grip,
keep my wrist relaxed, and use light pressure
to make smooth, controlled strokes.
Materials
Short, sharpened pencil
Eraser
Ruled paper (primary lines preferred)
Tracing Pad (below)
(Optional) Pencil grip or small rubber band
Mini-lesson — Making your grip comfy
When you hold your pencil in a comfy way,
writing feels easier and your hand does not get tired so fast.
What is a tripod grip?
Your thumb and pointer finger gently pinch the pencil.
Your middle finger is the little seat under the pencil.
The other fingers curl softly into your hand and stay relaxed.
How should the pencil sit?
The pencil points towards your shoulder, not straight up in the air.
It rests between your thumb and pointer finger, not in a fist.
It moves mostly with your fingers, not your whole arm.
Light pressure
Press lightly, so there are no deep dents in the paper.
Try to make smooth lines, not very dark or scratchy.
If your hand hurts, stop for a moment, shake your fingers, and then start again.
Ask yourself:
"Can my fingers wiggle? Is my wrist soft? Is my pencil pointing to my shoulder?"
Picture strip: "Tripod grip check"
Guided Practice — Tripod grip routine
Use this routine to set up your grip
and warm up your fingers before you write.
Make your grip:
Hold your pencil with a tripod grip:
thumb and pointer finger pinch,
middle finger is the little seat.
Check that your other fingers are relaxed.
Do a quick check:
Ask yourself,
"Can my fingers wiggle? Is my wrist soft?
Is my pencil pointing to my shoulder?"
If something feels squashed, try again slowly.
Trace on the pad:
On the Tracing Pad, choose lines or letters
from the dropdown.
Make short, top-to-bottom strokes with
light pressure.
Try to keep each line smooth.
Say the rule:
Each time you start a row, quietly say,
"Soft fingers, light pressure."
Let your hand move gently, not too hard.
Move to paper:
On your paper, write one neat line of
l l l l l.
Circle the row that looks the smoothest to you.
Take a small rest:
If your hand feels tired, stop for a moment.
Gently shake your fingers, then do one more short row.
You can use this grip warm-up at the start of writing time
until your comfy tripod grip feels quick and easy.
Tracing Pad
Drag & Drop — Build and write grip rules
First, build each short sentence.
Then copy it onto your ruled paper.
Step 1 (on the device):
Drag the words into the correct order.
Release inside a slot to drop.
Step 2 (on paper):
Write each finished sentence on your paper
with neat letters and clear spaces.
Pinchthepencilgently.
Restitonyourmiddlefinger.
Keepyourwristsoftandrelaxed.
Uselightpressureforsmoothlines.
Holdyourpapersteady.
Quick Check — Holding a pencil correctly
Answer each question about grip, wrist, and
light pressure. This is a gentle 10-question check.
Next Gen Learning