The brain lights up when we use our hands for writing.
To test this theory, the brain was monitored with electrodes. Science shows it is better to write with our hands than to use a keyboard.
What happens in the brain? When writing by hand, the brain explodes with brain activity.
When using a keyboard, not so much.
We know that the brain is like a muscle, use it or lose it. There are children today who don't know how to hold a pencil. Cursive writing is no longer taught in public school. If I were sending my child to a private school, I would insist that she be taught cursive. Ending the teaching of cursive writing is the worst thing I think that has happened to public education of our children today.
When I asked a 25 year old woman to type up my handwritten stories, she told me she couldn't because she could not read cursive writing. I don't think she could write her signature in cursive.
How sad that a college graduate can't read the language that her ancestors used, our founding fathers used. She can't read the original Constitution of the United States. Who doesn't think writing cursive is important? And it is difficult to learn unless it is taught in school. Handwriting is a part of our cultural heritage. It was used even in ancient times because it is more than simply putting marks on paper
A brilliant college student who always took notes on her laptop, had a tough time remembering what she wrote when it was test time. She was persuaded to stop using the keyboard and she began writing with her hand. Her tests scores improved immensely.
Keyboarding seems more productive. But notes written on paper are processed in the brain which makes the students retain them longer.
A perfect example is a man who suffered a stroke and lost his ability to speak and understand words. He started to copy words out of the dictionary by handwriting in cursive. His speech and word understanding came back.
Do your children or grandchildren know how to hold a pen--write with a pen? Do they color with a crayon? I have letters from my father to my mother that are one hundred years old. They are written in cursive by hand on lined paper. I treasure those letters. If my family in years to come try to read these words, a century old, they cannot because they were only taught to read printed words from a keyboard.
If we lose handwriting, we might lose brain function over time. Will technology steal the brains of our descendants?
To learn more on this subject:
This is a terrific program on YouTube.
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