Identifying Pencil Grasp Style: Why It Matters
Have a pen or pencil handy? Pick it up and hold it as if you were about to write with it. Note the way the pencil sits between your fingers and which fingers you use to support it. Does the way you hold your pencil make a difference?
As it turns out, yes. How you hold your pencil really does make a difference—and it will also impact your writing. Your pencil grasp is directly related to handwriting speed and legibility.1 A mature grasp is more efficient and less fatiguing. It involves good distal hold and control on the pen or pencil, which requires the development of adequate intrinsic strength and in-hand manipulation skills.
Mature Grasp Styles
There are four types of mature grasp:
Dynamic tripod: The pencil is held in the tips of the thumb, index finger, and long finger, resting in the webspace. Writing is done by moving the fingertips.- Dynamic quadrupod: The pencil is held in the tips of the thumb, index finger, long finger, and ring finger, resting in the webspace. Writing is done by moving the fingertips.
- Lateral tripod: The pencil is held along the lateral side of the thumb by the index finger and long finger. The pencil does not rest in the webspace. Writing is done by moving the fingertips.
- Lateral quadrupod: The pencil is held along the lateral side of the thumb by the index finger, long finger, and ring finger. The pencil does not rest in the webspace. Writing is done by moving the fingertips.
Take another look at the pencil in your hand. Can you identify your grasp as one of these? If not, do not despair.
An adaptive pencil hold is an alternative that can provide stability and control.1 It involves placing the pencil between the index finger and long finger and holding it with the tip of the thumb, the index finger, and the long finger.
Immature Pencil Grasps
Unfortunately, some people develop an awkward static grasp pattern, which can impact handwriting and speed since the motion primarily comes from the wrist. There are three types of immature grasp:1
- Static tripod grasp: The pencil is held with the thumb, the index finger, and the long finger, but there is no movement of the fingertips during writing.
- Interdigital grasp: The tips of all the fingers and the thumb are on the pencil, which is held without movement during writing.
- Lateral thumb-wrapped grasp: The thumb wraps over the pencil to press it against the index finger for control. The fingers will help hold the pencil but do not move during writing.
Developing Hand Grasp
The development of hand grasp begins in infancy and continues into the teenage years.
In the newborn hand, there is a normal physiological flexion. The hand reflexively grasps around objects placed in it.2,3 As the baby starts to spend more time in prone, they open their fingers more3 and learn to push up onto the hands. Grasp of objects progresses from a crude palmar grasp, to ulnar palmar, to a raking grasp, to a radial palmar grasp. By 8 to 9 months of age, the palmar arches are starting to develop as the child’s weight shifts through their hands as they crawl. As a neat pincer grasp develops, the child is able to isolate their finger for pointing.2,3
By the time the child is a year old, they are able to grasp and release objects with enhanced manipulation.4 By age 2, skilled dissociation, fine motor manipulation and refined release become evident.2,3,4 Between the ages of 2 and 3 years, in-hand manipulation starts to develop, the child can release small objects with precision into a small hole, and they can use a digital pronated grasp. Between the ages of 3 to 4 years, the child develops refined control and starts to use a static tripod grasp. Between 4 and 5 years of age, the child develops distal control and strength, allowing them to shift to a dynamic tripod grasp for coloring and writing.2,3 As the child matures into the teenage years, finger strength and control improve to allow for further hand-eye coordination.
Grasp is just one part of hand skill development, and we hope you are now inspired to watch our MedBridge course “Normal Development of the Hand and Upper Extremity” to learn more about the normal development starting from utero and moving through the teen years. By remembering the developmental progression of hand skills such as grasp/release, in-hand manipulation, and pencil grasp, a therapist can provide advanced intervention to encourage the child’s potential for maximal hand use, despite any diagnosis or condition.
- Schwellnus, H., Carnahan, H., Kushki, A., Polatajko, H., Missiuna, C., & Chau, T. (2012). Effect of pencil grasp on the speed and legibility of handwriting in children. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 66: 718–726.
- Hadders-Algra, M. (2013). Typical and atypical development of reaching and postural control in infancy. Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology, 55(Suppl 4): 5–8.
- Ho, E. S. (2010). Measuring hand function in the young child. Journal of Hand Therapy, 23(3): 323–8.
- Case-Smith, J. (2006) Chapter 7: Hand skill development in the context of infant play: Birth to 2 years. In A. Henderson & C. Pehoski (Eds.), Hand Function in the Child: Foundations for Remediation, St. Louis,,MO: Mosby.
