The Print Tool Assessment: A Comprehensive Guide for Educators and Therapists

Unlocking Handwriting Success Through Evidence-Based Evaluation

Handwriting remains a foundational skill in academic success, yet many children struggle with the fine motor coordination and visual-motor integration required for legible, efficient writing. For educators and occupational therapists seeking reliable, practical assessment tools, The Print Tool stands out as a scientifically validated instrument that bridges evaluation with actionable remediation strategies.

What is The Print Tool Assessment?

Developed by Jan Olsen, OTR and Emily Knapton, M.Ed., OTR/L as part of the Handwriting Without Tears curriculum, The Print Tool is a comprehensive handwriting evaluation designed specifically for children ages 6-8 and beyond. Over the past decade, thousands of educators and therapists have relied on this assessment to identify handwriting difficulties and guide targeted interventions.

Unlike generic handwriting assessments, The Print Tool takes a functional approach that examines the specific components of handwriting proficiency. It evaluates seven critical areas that directly impact a child's ability to produce legible written work in real classroom settings.

The Seven Components of Assessment

The Print Tool provides a systematic framework for evaluating handwriting through seven distinct scoring components:

1. Memory

Assesses whether children can recall and reproduce letter forms without visual references, indicating internalization of letter patterns.

2. Orientation

Evaluates correct letter orientation and identifies reversals or rotations that affect legibility.

3. Placement

Measures proper letter placement on lines, including understanding of baseline, midline, and descender guidelines.

4. Size

Examines consistency in letter height and proportion, with grade-specific expectations. The assessment includes a measuring tool to objectively evaluate whether letters fall within appropriate size parameters.

5. Starting Point and Sequence

Determines whether children begin letters at the correct starting position and follow the proper stroke sequence. This component accommodates different curricula, including Handwriting Without Tears, D'Nealian, and Zaner-Bloser.

6. Control

Analyzes the smoothness and precision of letter formation, identifying issues with line quality, gaps, or overshoots.

7. Spacing

Evaluates both letter-to-letter spacing (identifying touching, overlapping, or excessive gaps) and word-to-word spacing, with grade-level specific expectations.

Scientific Validation and Research Support

The Print Tool isn't just another assessment checklist—it's backed by peer-reviewed research demonstrating its validity and reliability. A 2018 study published in the Journal of Occupational Therapy, Schools, & Early Intervention examined the concurrent validity of The Print Tool compared with the Test of Handwriting Skills-Revised (THS-R). The research findings were compelling: The Print Tool overall scores showed a strong correlation with THS-R standard scores, suggesting good concurrent validity. Additionally, the assessment scores aligned consistently with teacher perceptions of student handwriting performance.

This dual validation—both against standardized assessments and classroom teacher observations—makes The Print Tool particularly valuable for school-based practitioners who need to justify intervention services and communicate effectively with educational teams.

Practical Implementation: From Evaluation to Intervention

One of The Print Tool's strongest features is its seamless connection between assessment and remediation. The evaluation process follows a logical sequence:

1. Gather Student Information: Collect background data and developmental history
2. Review School Papers: Analyze authentic writing samples from classroom work
3. Observe the Child: Watch pencil grasp, posture, and writing behaviors in action
4. Observe Letters and Numbers: Systematically evaluate each component
5. Score and Interpret: Use the scoring framework to identify specific deficit areas

The recent updates to The Print Tool have made this process even more efficient. Simplified scoring procedures, particularly for spacing assessment, reduce evaluation time while maintaining measurement accuracy. The streamlined approach means therapists can complete assessments more quickly, allowing more time for intervention.

The Remediation Advantage

What sets The Print Tool apart from other handwriting assessments is its built-in remediation framework. Once scoring is complete, practitioners can immediately identify targeted intervention strategies. The updated easy-to-use remediation form allows therapists and educators to simply check what skills need development, then access specific remediation tools and techniques.

The latest version incorporates technology products and multi-sensory elements, recognizing that today's children often respond well to varied instructional approaches. This flexibility enables practitioners to tailor interventions to individual learning styles and preferences.

Universal Application

Another significant advantage is The Print Tool's international compatibility. The assessment can now be used with any printing program worldwide, making it valuable for therapists and educators working in diverse educational systems and with various handwriting curricula.

Real-World Clinical Application

Consider a typical scenario: A second-grade teacher refers a student who struggles to complete written assignments at the same pace as peers. The occupational therapist administers The Print Tool and discovers that while the child has excellent memory and orientation scores, significant deficits appear in spacing and starting point/sequence. This specific information allows the therapist to target remediation precisely where needed, rather than implementing a generic handwriting program.

The assessment results also provide objective data for IEP teams, helping justify the need for occupational therapy services and establishing measurable goals. Teachers appreciate the concrete information about what specific skills to support in the classroom, creating a collaborative approach to intervention.

Integration with Digital Tools

For Level 1 certified handwriting specialists, Print Tool Online Scoring offers an efficient digital platform for scoring and remediation. This online tool facilitates the evaluation process, making it quicker to score the seven handwriting components and generate remediation recommendations. The digital format also simplifies documentation and progress monitoring over time.

Comparing The Print Tool to Other Assessments

When compared to other handwriting evaluation tools like the Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration (VMI) or the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency (BOT-2), The Print Tool offers distinct advantages:

• Functional Focus: Directly assesses handwriting rather than broader motor or visual-motor skills
• Curriculum Flexibility: Works with multiple handwriting programs
• Cost-Effective: Allows copying of scoring materials after initial purchase
• Quick Administration: Streamlined process fits realistic clinical schedules
• Direct Remediation Link: Built-in intervention recommendations

While tools like the Minnesota Handwriting Assessment or Test of Handwriting Skills-Revised serve important purposes, The Print Tool's combination of validity, practical utility, and remediation integration makes it particularly valuable for school-based practitioners.

Best Practices for Implementation

To maximize the effectiveness of The Print Tool assessment:

Create Optimal Testing Conditions: Ensure adequate lighting, appropriate seating, and minimal distractions. Provide the same type of paper and writing implements the child typically uses in the classroom.

Review Authentic Samples: Don't rely solely on the formal assessment. Examining actual schoolwork provides context about how handwriting difficulties impact academic performance.

Involve the Educational Team: Share results with teachers, parents, and other team members using language they understand. The component-based scoring makes it easy to explain specific areas of concern.

Set Measurable Goals: Use the assessment data to establish concrete, measurable objectives. For example, "Student will demonstrate correct starting point and sequence for lowercase letters in 80% of opportunities" is more specific than "Student will improve handwriting."

Reassess Regularly: Use The Print Tool for progress monitoring to demonstrate intervention effectiveness and adjust strategies as needed.

Addressing Common Concerns

Time Constraints: While comprehensive assessment always requires time, The Print Tool's simplified scoring makes it one of the more efficient options available. The time invested yields specific, actionable information that prevents wasted intervention time on non-problem areas.

Learning the Scoring System: Like any assessment, there's a learning curve. However, practitioners consistently report that once they understand the patterns (such as gaps scoring as 1, overshoots as 2), scoring becomes intuitive and quick.

Age Appropriateness: While designed for ages 6-8, therapists successfully use The Print Tool with older students when appropriate, particularly those with developmental delays or those learning English as a second language.

The Evidence-Based Practice Imperative

In an era of accountability and evidence-based practice, occupational therapists and educators need assessment tools that meet rigorous standards while remaining practical for real-world use. The Print Tool successfully balances scientific validity with clinical utility, providing the objective data needed to identify handwriting deficits, track progress, and justify intervention.

The alignment between Print Tool scores and teacher perceptions validates what practitioners have observed clinically: this assessment captures the handwriting difficulties that actually interfere with classroom performance. It's not just measuring isolated skills in a clinical vacuum—it's identifying real functional deficits that matter to children's academic success.

Looking Forward: Telehealth and Beyond

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated adoption of telehealth service delivery, and research demonstrates that handwriting interventions, including those using The Print Tool for assessment, can be effectively delivered remotely. This flexibility expands access to services for families in rural areas or those with transportation challenges.

As education continues evolving, with increased emphasis on digital literacy alongside traditional handwriting skills, tools like The Print Tool help ensure that foundational fine motor and visual-motor skills don't get overlooked. Strong handwriting skills support broader academic competencies, including spelling, written expression, and even reading development.

Conclusion

The Print Tool Assessment represents what effective educational assessment should be: scientifically sound, practically useful, and directly connected to intervention. For occupational therapists and educators working with children who struggle with handwriting, it offers a clear pathway from identification of specific deficits to targeted remediation strategies.

The combination of comprehensive component analysis, research validation, streamlined scoring, and integrated remediation recommendations makes The Print Tool an invaluable asset in supporting children's handwriting development. As thousands of practitioners have discovered over the past decade, this assessment tool does more than evaluate—it empowers professionals to make meaningful differences in children's academic success.

Whether you're a school-based occupational therapist seeking evidence-based assessment tools, a special education teacher trying to understand a student's handwriting difficulties, or a private practitioner building your evaluation repertoire, The Print Tool deserves serious consideration as a cornerstone of your handwriting evaluation toolkit.

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