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Research Findings: Fluent and legible handwriting is associated with longer texts and higher text quality and is therefore an important goal in the primary school curriculum. While girls' handwriting tends to be more proficient than boys', potential differences in the correlates of girls' and boys' early handwriting are poorly understood. In this exploratory study, we investigated early handwriting (legibility, fluency, and time) and potential motor (fine motor skills, visuomotor integration) and cognitive (executive functions: inhibition, shifting, working memory) correlates in a sample of 118 first-grade children (46% girls, Mage: 7 years, 5 months). We tested gender differences and explored correlates of early handwriting skills of girls and boys. Extending previous findings, fine motor skills and visuomotor integration were related to early handwriting legibility, fluency, and time. Furthermore, shifting and working memory, but not inhibition, were related to specific handwriting skills. Moreover, girls outperformed boys regarding fine motor skills, visuomotor integration, and handwriting legibility. Interestingly, while the correlates of handwriting were diverse and strong for girls, only a few weak correlates were identified for boys. Practice or Policy: These results lay the ground for tailoring adequate interventions to support girls and boys (differently) in acquiring fluent and legible handwriting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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The acquisition of handwriting skills is a crucial goal in early primary school. Yet our comprehension of handwriting development, encompassing graphomotor skills and spelling, remains fragmented. The identification of predictors for handwriting skills is essential for providing early support. This longitudinal study aimed to explore the predictive roles of gender, working memory, and motivation to handwrite for graphomotor skills six months later and spelling skills one year later. Paper-and-pencil tasks (graphomotor skills, spelling), a tablet task (working memory), and a questionnaire (teachers' ratings of children's handwriting motivation) were employed. This study included 363 first-grade children (49.8% girls) aged 6–9 years. Results from a structural equation model, controlling for age and socioeconomic background, revealed that girls exhibited superior performance in graphomotor skills, while boys tended to spell more accurately. Furthermore, working memory predicted graphomotor skills but not spelling. Additionally, motivation to handwrite predicted both first-grade graphomotor skills and second-grade spelling. This study extends contemporary evidence, demonstrating that graphomotor skills predict spelling while considering gender and motivation. The findings underscore the pivotal role of graphomotor skills in spelling acquisition and suggest their contribution to spelling difficulties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]