Cursive writing?

[JessReplanted]

What do you use for teaching cursive? I started teaching my son cursive in K, with Abeka, but then felt that it was a mistake. This year (2nd grade) I have really put cursive on the back burner and planned to pick it up again next year using a different curriculum. I was just looking at Writing Without Tears though, and their cursive just isn't very pretty. :blink: It may sound silly, but I like the slanting and pretty loops.

 

What other options are there for cursive practice?

 

TIA!

[EJCMom]

I'm curious about this too. My daughter is really wanting to learn cursive. We've done HWT so far, and I'm with you, I just don't like the look of their cursive. I'd really like to find something different. :bigear:

[texasmama]

We use A Reason for Handwriting - T (Transition) book is the one which begins cursive.

[Mommy to monkeys]

I'll have a 3rd grader next year. . .Cursive Connections is what I'm looking at using (that's what i say THIS week:lol:)

http://rainbowresource.com/product/sku/037609/1301802699-647867

[kchara]

I use Spencerian, but it's definitely a commitment, on both of your parts, and a LOT of practice. It's worth it, though.

[Hunter]

I've been steadily working on my own handwriting. It's really important to me, as part of my post trauma recovery, to have chosen a font that is reflective of the person I am...or am choosing to be. Whichever it is :-0 Part of leaving behind the robot mentality is a careful choice and mastery of a handwriting font.

 

I'm researching Cursive First right now. I use the Modern/D'Nealian cursive font. I have some currclick downloads and I do a lot of tracing of worksheets I make up in StartWrite.

 

I'm finding I need lots of carefully explained stroke work and opportunities to trace. "Just do it!" doesn't work for me.

[KeriJ]

Hi Jess. We are in the exact same boat. I plan to try Pentime to finish out the year. only about 5 dollars, order from Rainbow Resource. It looks simple to follow and has instructions right on the pages rather than a TM.

[...................]

Learning a cursive that isn't as pretty is really ok. I taught my son with Calvert Script- very similar to HWOT.

 

But now, 3 years later, he taught himself to slant, and taught himself cursive capitals, and his cursive is fantastic, especially for a boy.

 

In retrospect, I will say that slanting makes the hand less tired. But it was very easy to do- it took only a week for him to learn to slant.

 

Really, it doesn't matter what the cursive looks like. Each child will develop his own hand after a few years anyway. And he or she can always add a few loops or changes if desired.

 

Based on that, my dd will be learning cursive using HWOT, because I know she will change it and beautify it when she is ready.

 

I hope that perspective is helpful. :)

 

PS I tried Pentime and it's very good, a close second to Calvert Script and HWOT which tie for the easiest for children to learn, iMO

[TC5]

I've used Cursive First and made copy work with Start Write after that. It was $15 for a helpful booklet that explains preparation, theory, and how to do it and a packet of worksheets that you can copy over and over for practice and for more children. It also includes phonogram cards with scripting to help teach the proper letter formation, as well as other helps.

 

I started my now-8yo son with this in K, and his cursive is beautiful. My 10yo started with printing and usually still prints less-than-neatly, but when he does write in cursive, it looks quite nice. My 5yo son is now learning cursive with this. It is cheaper and appears easier than other programs I have considered using.

[JessReplanted]

Hi Jess. We are in the exact same boat. I plan to try Pentime to finish out the year. only about 5 dollars, order from Rainbow Resource. It looks simple to follow and has instructions right on the pages rather than a TM.

 

 

Hi Keri!! :)

[JessReplanted]

Thanks for the input. I was thinking about this last night and realized that just because I teach a style with pretty slants and swirls, it doesn't mean that my kids will actually write that way. Focusing on cursive that is legible and neat wouldn't be such a bad thing. ;)

[boscopup]

Just today, I showed my son some samples of cursive and asked which one he wanted to do. He picked out Getty-Dubay Italic Cursive, which is what I was planning on doing anyway. I mainly wanted to see if he wanted to do that or one of the traditional style cursive fonts. I think GDI will be a good fit for him.

 

My 4 year old said he wanted to learn traditional cursive. I'm not prepared to teach him that (seriously, my cursive is awful and there aren't that many good cursive programs for young children like this). I suggested regular italic print (GDI), and he liked that too. Good. I was planning to get book A for him anyway. :D