TPP 513: Understanding Dysgraphia: Beyond the Surface of Messy Handwriting, with Kelli Fetter
Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent ChildrenShow Notes
Today we’re diving into dysgraphia—what it is, how it’s different from general handwriting struggles, and why so many kids go unsupported for far too long. My guest is Kelli Fetter, a certified handwriting specialist and occupational therapist, and the founder of Handwriting Solutions. Kelli breaks down the neurological underpinnings of dysgraphia, how it can show up differently from child to child, and why early recognition is so important. We talk about the role of assessment, how to distinguish dysgraphia from more general handwriting difficulties, and what meaningful support can look like at home and in school. This is a practical, eye-opening conversation for anyone trying to better understand—and advocate for—a child struggling with writing.
About Kelli Fetter
Kelli Fetter, MS, OTR/L is a Certified Handwriting Specialist and the founder of Handwriting Solutions, LLC, where she and her team provide world-class handwriting, reading, and spelling tutoring to students virtually across the globe. Beyond her direct work with families, Kelli is a recognized leader in teacher and therapist education, equipping professionals with evidence-based strategies that transform student outcomes.
With a career rooted in occupational therapy, Kelli has practiced in pediatric outpatient clinics, early intervention programs, preschools, and private schools, and has also served as an adjunct professor in pediatrics and kinesiology. Her expertise spans handwriting, dysgraphia, and dyslexia, supported by extensive advanced training in these areas.Kelli’s passion is deeply personal, fueled by her own daughter’s journey with dyslexia and dysgraphia. This lived experience drives her mission to empower parents, educators, and therapists with the tools and confidence they need to unlock every child’s potential.
Things you'll learn from this episode
How dysgraphia differs from messy handwriting and why it’s rooted in complex neurological processes
Why handwriting is such a demanding task for the brain, involving multiple systems working together
How to recognize common signs like avoidance, frustration, and inconsistent output
Why dysgraphia is often overlooked in schools and the importance of comprehensive assessment and advocacy
How to balance skill-building with technology accommodations to support functional success
Why focusing on confidence and real-world skills matters more than striving for perfect handwriting
Resources mentioned
Handwriting Solutions (Kelli’s website)
Handwriting Solutions Blog
Red Flags of Handwriting Struggles (freebie)
Schedule a free consultation
Email Kelli
Kelli on Instagram
Kelli on Facebook
What is Dyscalculia? Parent Advocate Laura Jackson Talks About her Family’s Journey with a Math Disability (Tilt Parenting episode)
Rebecca Bush Offers a Pathway for Parents with Newly-Identified Dyslexic Kids (Tilt Parenting episode)
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
More from Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
Journalist and author Jessica Slice comes back to the show to share her family’s experience with PANS, or pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome, which began when her daughter experienced a sudden and severe change in behavior and functioning following a viral illness. Jessica recently shared her story in a viral article in New York Magazine, and today she takes us deep into what happened to her daughter, the medical dismissal her family encountered, and the long path toward getting a diagnosis and treatment. We also dig into why PANS and PANDAS remain controversial, what researchers believe may be happening in the brain, and what Jessica learned through both her family’s experience and her reporting. And importantly, we talk about what parents can do if their child experiences a sudden, dramatic onset of symptoms that they suspect could be PANS or PANDAS, including where to begin and how to advocate for care.
Beth Gellman-Beer spent her whole career fighting for kids with disabilities — first as a student written off as “lazy,” then as a federal civil rights attorney who found her dream job protecting students like her younger self. But on one ordinary night, a phone call changed everything: Her entire office had been eliminated.
Psychologist, speaker, and author Dr. Mona Delahooke talks about her new book Brain-Body Parenting, and the power in understanding and responding to children's complicated behavior as a symptom rather than a problem.
Today I’m welcoming Amanda Diekman back to the show to talk about her new book, The Parents Handbook for Kids in Burnout: A Low Demand Approach to Healing and Thriving, and what parents need to understand when their child is experiencing burnout. Amanda will explain what burnout actually is, how it can show up differently across childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood, and why it’s so often mistaken for anxiety or depression. We talk about the signs parents may miss, what’s happening beneath the surface when a child can no longer meet the demands of everyday life, and how a low demand approach can create the conditions for healing. And importantly, Amanda shares what recovery can look like, how parents can support their child without inadvertently adding more pressure, and why healing from burnout requires us to rethink our expectations, timelines, and ideas about progress.
Dr. Lori Desautels (author, Connections over Compliance: Rewiring our Perceptions of Discipline) helps educators, parents, and adults who work with children shift the way they think about discipline by reaching for sustainable behavioral changes through brain state awareness rather than compliance and obedience. She’s actively pushing back against reactive and punitive practices that can potentially reactivate the developing stress response systems of children, and is advocating for stronger co-regulation practices and regulated brain and body states for adults.