9 yr old insists on carrying pencil everywhere

my nine year old son will keep a pencil grasped in his palm evern when sleeping-in his hand when getting on school bus-how do I stop this behavior as it is unsafe? some times it can be the same pencil for several days or the one he was using that day. He was a preemi at six months gestation-never cared for a paci or blankie or any specific toy and broke his thumb sucking habit in kindergarten. Although he may hang on to an object for a short period of time and discard it later the pencils stand.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

This is harmless enough in general, but obviously not so at night. Insist, in a calm, straightforward way, that he select a substitute for his sleeping time.