Handwriting, Minds, and Bodies

Our brains are part of our bodies. In the modern age we have a habit of forgetting this, of assuming that our brains are just specialized information processors that we will one day download into computers. But more evidence turns up all the time of the ways our minds are embedded in our bodies and our thoughts enmeshed with what our bodies do. Consider some recent studies of the role handwriting plays in learning:

Psychologists and neuroscientists say it is far too soon to declare handwriting a relic of the past. New evidence suggests that the links between handwriting and broader educational development run deep.

Children not only learn to read more quickly when they first learn to write by hand, but they also remain better able to generate ideas and retain information. In other words, it’s not just what we write that matters — but how.

First grade teachers all understand the importance of writing for learning to read, which is why young children spend so much time learning to form letters properly. The other studies cited in this article are more speculative. Still, there is evidence that things like taking notes by hand and writing out lists of ideas in cursive can stimulate our brains to think more productively.

I don't know how important this is for adults, but I do think it is a mistake to assume that things like reading from computer screens and typing instead of writing make no meaningful difference to how we think, feel, and remember.