Which cursive handwriting program?

[Momma4]

Hi, I want to teach my 6yr old son cursive from the beginning (missing out manuscript), I've been looking at Abeka but the international shipping costs would be a killer. What other programs can you recommend?

 

Xx

[MotherGoose]

You can download logic of English cursive program. We like it.

[Momma4]

Thanks mother goose. I'll have a look.

 

Oh my goodness I just checked the shipping on abeka and it was $156 craaaazy!

[MotherGoose]

Thanks mother goose. I'll have a look.

 

Oh my goodness I just checked the shipping on abeka and it was $156 craaaazy!

There's a whole phonics curriculum that goes with it but you can get the cursive portion only which was somewhere about $30, IIRC.

[HomeAgain]

My 6yo picked out New American Cursive from Memoria Press.  He's really enjoying it.  The first book only has around 100 pages, so he works for a set time rather than a set amount each day.

[Hunter]

I prefer Spalding for lefties, but Don Potters free cursive-first curriculum to supplement the free revised Alpha-Phonics is excellent for righties. No shipping required. :)

 

Handwriting Pages

http://www.donpotter.net/pdf/af_cursive.pdf

 

Alpha-Phonics

http://blumenfeld.campconstitution.net

 

Don Potters Alpha-Phonics and Cursive-first main page

http://www.donpotter.net/reading_clinic.html

Edited December 19, 2016 by Hunter

[Jess4879]

Christianbook.com also carries Abeka.  Maybe their shipping will be less?  We use A Reason For Handwriting for cursive, but we don't start until grade 4...

[CadenceSophia]

What I didn't realize when I started trying to teach my kids to write, was that it is really ok to teach cursive without a book or formal program. I tried the Abeka cursive first but it didn't work for us although it is really nice. After that I just taught my son all the letters by stroke up on the white board and had him write them one at a time until he could write the whole alphabet. After that we started joining them up to make cvc words and I was sure to be very specific about how each letter connects to the others. I'd demonstrate on the board, point anything out as I wrote, then erase and make him write from memory. Fancy style and slant can come later, especially if you are doing cursive first. A kindergartener just needs to get the basic shapes of each letter and the connections right.

[mamaraby]

http://teachmejoy.com/index.php

 

Inexpensive and PDF curriculum. It worked well for us.

[hollyhock]

http://teachmejoy.com/index.php

 

Inexpensive and PDF curriculum. It worked well for us.

 

This is what I use. And it's a download so you don't have to pay for shipping, just printing.

[Momma4]

Thanks everyone. I'll have a look at the links. Xxx

[HS Mom in NC]

You could do Getty Dubay's Italic Script first and skip the printing entirely.  Since the script is based on the same strokes as the print with simple serifs connecting them, the argument could be made that you're learning both at the same time. 

Here you can see the Italic Script on the left next to a commonly used cursive on the right: http://www.handwritingsuccess.com/example-page-two.php

Edited December 20, 2016 by Homeschool Mom in AZ

[Guest]

We have really loved the Logic of English cursive program, the Rhythm of Handwriting. We spent two years on Getty Dubay and unfortunately ended up with a bunch of case size issues and reversals. The cursive script has helped immensely and my kids have very nice handwriting without drama or tears.

[OneStepAtATime]

New American Cursive with the Start Write software gives you the flexibility to print pages in different sizes and with different styles (dotted letters, letters with guided arrows, etc) and to print words and sentences that might appeal to your child.  DS loved that when he wanted to write a letter to his dad in cursive I was able to print out what he had wanted to say in dotted letters, he was able to trace it a few times until he was comfortable, then write it out himself in cursive.  DD liked copying quotes from songs or people.

[Momma4]

I've managed to find the Abeka handwriting workbooks on the ChristianBook website thanks to Jess, with much more reasonable shipping.

 

I'm looking at the witting with phonics cursive workbooks as we're going through phonics pathways so it matches up nicely. Do I need the writing tablets as well, or is that a separate writing programme?

 

Xx

[CAtoVA]

Zaner Bloser Cursive is an oldie but a goodie for us! We get it through Rainbow Resource but it is available on Amazon and often even on Ebay.

[Ellie]

Hi, I want to teach my 6yr old son cursive from the beginning (missing out manuscript), I've been looking at Abeka but the international shipping costs would be a killer. What other programs can you recommend?

 

Xx

 

I like a good, traditional hand, such as Zaner Bloser or Palmer. Zaner Bloser teaches the strokes first, then the letters that use each stroke.

 

Alternatively, you could do Spaldinng: teach the letters in manuscript first, along with their sounds, then as soon as he knows those well, teach him how to connect the letters--connected writing rather than cursive. He'll need to know how to write in manuscript anyway; you get a two-fer, sort of, if you do it this way. :-)