Hand Strength Activities: What They Practice and Where They Fit

By Laura Lurns · Reviewed by Philip Weaver · Last reviewed 2026-10-02

What hand strength activities practice

In our view, a hand activity practices what it asks of the hand. A squeezing game practices squeezing, while handwriting practice is what improves handwriting.

Handwriting improves when it is taught and practiced.

What the research we hold says about motor work and handwriting

We hold no study of hand strength, by that name, and handwriting. That is a gap in what we hold, not a finding either way. The nearest studies tested wider motor programs. They are below.

One small trial gave some children sensory-motor work (Denton and colleagues, 2006). They got better at some sensory-motor skills. Their handwriting got worse. A practice group in the same trial improved. The children had handwriting trouble but no identified school need. We could read only its summary.

In another trial, a sensory-motor program improved about as much as a task-based one (Weintraub and colleagues, 2009). Both were called handwriting programs. That trial's summary does not say what practice each held.

One review looked at 23 trials of motor programs in schools (Eddy and colleagues, 2019). In that review, all seven handwriting-practice programs reported some gain, though results were mixed across measures. Nearly all its handwriting trials were of typical 5- to 7-year-olds. Its authors say some studies had weak designs, so the results need care.

In that review, one fine-motor program measured handwriting in five ways. Only one of the five showed a clear gain: copying capital letters.

One review looked at help for school-age children with handwriting trouble (Hoy and colleagues, 2011). Help that left out handwriting practice did not work. Neither did help with too few practice sessions.

Handwriting improves most consistently with handwriting practice; motor work alone has not been shown to improve it. Keep any hand or finger exercise alongside handwriting practice, not in place of it.

Three hand activities we would try

Here are three kinds of hand activity we would try.

• Crumpling. Scrunch scrap paper into tight balls. Toss them into a box.
• Tearing. Tear paper into thin strips for a picture.
• Twisting. Open and close plastic jar lids of different sizes.

The activities on this page are ours, not a program from a study. Do them alongside handwriting practice, which is what improves handwriting.

Using hand activities alongside handwriting practice

In our view, keep each hand activity to a few minutes. Do it alongside handwriting practice, which is what improves handwriting. If your child likes a warm-up, keep it short. Then go to the letters. Our position is that short, frequent practice does more than long, rare sessions. In our experience, handwriting gets worse as a child tires. Stop before it falls apart.

Work on handwriting, spelling and composing side by side.

When a hand hurts or tires

Does your child's hand often hurt when writing? In our view, tell the teacher, and your child's doctor if it keeps up. In our view, stop any hand activity that hurts.

Pain, tiredness, or writing that falls apart after a few lines are worth raising.

Gadgets and kits

This page recommends no grip aid, hand gadget or exercise toy.

When to ask for help

Each of these is a reason to ask for help on its own.

• Little change, even with steady practice and good teaching.
• Writing well below your child's other schoolwork.
• A teacher who raises a concern about writing.
• Extreme upset about writing.
• Complete avoidance of writing.
• Hopelessness about learning.
• Sadness or worry that lasts.
• Significant delays in speech, language or motor development.
• A skill that was there and has gone. Our position is that a lost skill goes to a doctor first, not a tutor.

If no skill has gone, start with the teacher. Say what you are seeing at home, and what you have tried. Beyond the teacher, the right person depends on what it turns out to be about. If the work is too hard, someone who works on that school skill. If worry or mood is the thing, someone who works with children's mental health. In our view, delays in speech, language or movement are worth raising with your child's doctor. In our view, if you are worried enough to ask, a professional evaluation is worth asking about.

Any talk of hurting themselves is a same-day call to your doctor or a crisis line.