ADHD, Dysgraphia, and Giftedness

The study of dysgraphia, which can be summarized as handwriting impairment, has developed in the last few decades concurrently with a deeper understanding of this neurodevelopmental disorder that affects many areas of life for everybody who suffers from it, but mainly children and adolescents. Though the rate of dysgraphia decreases when growing up, there is still a substantial number of children who suffer from it for the rest of their lives, many of whom are not diagnosed. Among gifted children, the problem of not being diagnosed at all or misdiagnosed is more common than among the non-gifted. One of the main reasons for diagnosing difficulties of dysgraphia is the co-occurrence of dysgraphia with attention deficit disorder, with or without Hyperactivity (AD[H]D). This work explains in detail the reasons for this phenomenon, as well as offers ways to overcome this difficulty. It also suggests ways to help gifted and non-gifted dysgraphic children and adolescents, based on new developments in understanding the phenomenon from a neuropsychological perspective and using this understanding to assist them in their academic, social, and emotional lives.