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A note from me to you

I’m a mom, and my child is one of those kids with bundles of energy. Fidgety, easily distracted, and sitting down for homework has never come naturally.

Through lots of trial and error, I noticed something: when movement came first, settling in got easier. A little physical activity, a bit of sensory input, a short break, and suddenly the pencil didn’t feel like such a fight.

So I dug in. I spent hours reading popular occupational therapy resources and well-known ADHD resources, and we even did a few OT sessions to learn how to support my child’s sensory needs. Two kinds of movement stood out. The first was heavy work, like pushing against a wall, a “brain recharge” movement that helps a busy body feel calm and grounded. The second was cross-lateral movement, where an arm or leg reaches across the body. It gets both sides of the body working together, which is exactly what handwriting asks for. Paired up, they became a quick warm-up before sitting down to write.

My child is also a lefty, and traditional cursive’s strong forward slant is built around right-handed writing, which can make it awkward for lefties. So I reduced the slant to make the cursive experience smoother, while keeping the letterforms traditional. My child can still read classic cursive and write in a style that feels natural for either hand.

I gathered the movements that helped most, and realized how much easier it would have been to have them all in one place instead of searching for them. That’s why I made this workbook. “Brain Recharge Breaks” pair short movements with simple cursive practice, so the help is already built in.

I’m not a therapist, just a parent who wanted something that worked with my child instead of against them. I hope it brings a little more calm to your homework time, too.

Mom & creator of MoreWays Learning