Can most teens read cursive these days?

[Janeway]

I want to write my niece a "love letter." She has a lot of struggles (with drugs, thanks to her parents) and I just really want to tell her how great she is. But I wrote it in cursive only to wonder if she would be able to read it.

[Wheres Toto]

If there's any doubt, I would rewrite it in print or typed up.  Why take the chance?

[Okra]

My teens can read cursive.

[Elizabeth86]

Wow, are they not teaching cursive these days?

[OneStepAtATime]

At least around here they stopped teaching cursive in schools several years ago.  My niece and nephews, therefore, cannot read cursive.  DD can because her English teacher taught it anyway and I continued once we started homeschooling.  Apparently the trend in many regions of the U.S. is to no longer teach cursive.

 

If you have doubts I would write it in print or type it.

[OneStepAtATime]

Wow, are they not teaching cursive these days?

At one point nearly every state in the Union (like 47 of them?) had stopped teaching cursive.  I know that was true roughly 5 years ago.  I don't know exactly when that started.  That trend is changing, though. so SOME school systems are considering going back to cursive or have already done so.  In the meantime, there was a several year segment of kids that were not taught cursive and many are in school systems that still don't.

[heartlikealion]

Not sure. Hoped they didn't drop it that many years ago. My nephew learned it in public school. He is in elem. Did she go to public school?

[Tree Frog]

I've found most students can't read cursive. My own kids, despite having been taught cursive, have asked me to read them notes from the grandparents.

 

[Xahm]

Many teens can't write it, but I think any typically developing teen would be able to read it if they took a few seconds to try. Most letters look about the same, and our brains are good at puzzling things out and filling in gaps. I've read horribly messy handwriting, and I've read things written in a foreign script (old German). The messy handwriting was harder to decipher.

[EKS]

My dyslexic son has trouble with it, but my neurotypical son can for the most part.

[OneStepAtATime]

Many teens can't write it, but I think any typically developing teen would be able to read it if they took a few seconds to try. Most letters look about the same, and our brains are good at puzzling things out and filling in gaps. I've read horribly messy handwriting, and I've read things written in a foreign script (old German). The messy handwriting was harder to decipher.

This depends on the cursive writing.  One of my nephews once described cursive as spaghetti.  He has never been taught cursive and it makes no sense to him.  He cannot read it.  The cursive he saw the most, though, was a fancy script written by his grandmother.  It was utterly indecipherable to him.  Honestly, I read cursive just fine but her cursive was so fancy and small that even though she wrote beautifully I struggled, too.

[sbgrace]

I would type or print it before you send it.

 

Edited September 19, 2017 by sbgrace

[Garga]

My nephew can't read it. He turned 18 this year. Public school.

 

Rewrite it.

[Jean in Newcastle]

My kids can read it just fine.

 

 

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[Tanaqui]

Better not to take the chance - type it.

[klmama]

You want this note to be an encouragement without also being a source of frustration.  Go ahead and rewrite it.

[Reefgazer]

Many can not , although mine can.

[Carrie12345]

The secretary in our high school was shocked that dd14 knew cursive. So I would say there's a good chance other teens don't.

[Andani]

I'd send the cursive love letter and include a printed "translation". Then she'd have a beautiful, unique, and highly personal note, as well as a way to make sure she can understand it.

[Elizabeth86]

At one point nearly every state in the Union (like 47 of them?) had stopped teaching cursive. I know that was true roughly 5 years ago. I don't know exactly when that started. That trend is changing, though. so SOME school systems are considering going back to cursive or have already done so. In the meantime, there was a several year segment of kids that were not taught cursive and many are in school systems that still don't.

Hmm who knew? This makes me giddy. I have always hated cursive. My cursive really looks no better than it did in second grade.

[vonfirmath]

Neither of my kids have been taught to write in cursive. My son can read a lot of it anyway, my daughter can sometimes read it. When it is very neat

[marbel]

I would print it so it's hand-written but in a way you know she will be able to read it.   As another pp said, why add frustration to her life?  I would not send the cursive copy along with it.  There's just no reason to send two copies.  That could just point out another failure in her life (whether her fault or not, if her life is not going well it could feel that way) and it won't be meaningful to her anyway if she can't read it.  And if she can, the printed copy can be interpreted as "I'm not sure you're smart enough to read cursive, so here's a translation."  Not saying you would be meaning it that way, but that's how it could look to someone who has a lot of negativity in their life.

 

ETA: My son can read some cursive.  I tried but could not teach him to write it. He had so many struggles with writing I didn't want to add to it.  I write him  notes in cursive sometimes to be sure he can read it. But he never encounters it other than that.  My daughter had an easier time writing it and still uses it sometimes, and can read it.  My own writing is a blend of cursive and manuscript, unless I'm trying very hard to be neat.

Edited September 19, 2017 by marbel

[Lanny]

When DD was in the  TTUISD Middle School, Cursive was a required part of the English course one school year. I wonder if she can still write & read Cursive? I will ask her later. 

[SparklyUnicorn]

I taught my first cursive, but not my second.  I have taught my second to read cursive though in the very rare instance he might encounter it.  There are only a few letters that look radically different than the print version. 

 

I used to believe cursive was soooo important.  I've changed my mind about it.

 

 

[Janeway]

Not sure. Hoped they didn't drop it that many years ago. My nephew learned it in public school. He is in elem. Did she go to public school?

She went to public school, but her parents frequently transferred her and never made her do her school work or anything. She dropped out in high school. She would still be in high school now, but her drug problems have taken over. 

 

I always feel like a handwritten note is more heart felt. And I do not want to come off as condescending by writing in print if she has no issue with cursive. If I type it though, then it might not come off that way, but won't be as personal. I just really felt for her last night at the visitation. She looked so sad and miserable, I mean, beyond from the obvious drug issues. I just wish she could pull through this. And I know her parents don't care.

[marbel]

She went to public school, but her parents frequently transferred her and never made her do her school work or anything. She dropped out in high school. She would still be in high school now, but her drug problems have taken over. 

 

I always feel like a handwritten note is more heart felt. And I do not want to come off as condescending by writing in print if she has no issue with cursive. If I type it though, then it might not come off that way, but won't be as personal. I just really felt for her last night at the visitation. She looked so sad and miserable, I mean, beyond from the obvious drug issues. I just wish she could pull through this. And I know her parents don't care.

 

Do you write to her frequently?  Would she know that you typically write in cursive?  I doubt that's something you need to worry about.  Some people prefer to print when they want something to be neat.  I rarely receive anything written in cursive anymore, and I do receive hand-written cards and notes sometimes.  It would never occur to me that someone who printed rather than wrote in cursive was condescending.

[SparklyUnicorn]

I would never take a printed letter as condescending.  I mean ultimately you want it to be legible.  There are a few in my family that have such bad handwriting that they type letters.  That's not meant to be cold and impersonal.  That's so people can read it! 

[Lanny]

My DD said that Cursive is for something "Fancy".   She doesn't think if you went into  a meeting you would need to write, because you would have a computer or tablet or phone or something you could write  notes on. But, I suspect there are university classes where electronics are not allowed and the students need to write notes, as I did when I was young?  DD mentioned something about it being from the 1800s...  ...  I'm not that old...

 

OT:  I generally Print, if I make a grocery list, for example.  And, now, with OCR, in programs/Apps like Evernote, you can Scan something in and it will know what it is.  With cursive, I suspect that would be much more difficult for the OCR.  

 

 

[Bambam]

I taught my kids Getty-Dubay italics, so it takes them a while to translate cursive, but they can do it. One worked at historical museum for a while and got a lot of practice reading older documents. 

 

I get letters from old ladies (70+). I know how to write in cursive, but it still takes me a long time to decipher some of their cursive. Shaky hands are not conducive to excellent penmanship. 

 

I use the Getty-Dubay italic system of writing when I write letters.  I guess people are able to read them, but I don't know for sure. They have complimented me on my handwriting though. 

[Lanny]

After   further comments to/from my DD I now know that there is a difference between Cursive and Regular Handwriting. I will need to Google the differences...  I think she believes that Cursive is fancier and faster to write? 

 

OT: When she was very young, my Wife was a Graphologist, in an elite Criminal Investigation unit. She says my handwriting is terrible. Why? Because you can read it and it would be easy to Forge my signature on a document.  I don't use Paper Checks any more, but that's a good reason not to use Paper Checks... The people here, most of them, use a "Signature" that looks like they are not of Sound Mind...

[Guest]

Depends on the district she was in. My seven year old can read cursive, but that's what we are learning. I know it is way less common, especially among teens and young adults. But I'd write it in cursive and just hope for the best. It's not like it is difficult to read if she is stuck, unless your handwriting is bad ;)

[Guest]

She went to public school, but her parents frequently transferred her and never made her do her school work or anything. She dropped out in high school. She would still be in high school now, but her drug problems have taken over.

 

I always feel like a handwritten note is more heart felt. And I do not want to come off as condescending by writing in print if she has no issue with cursive. If I type it though, then it might not come off that way, but won't be as personal. I just really felt for her last night at the visitation. She looked so sad and miserable, I mean, beyond from the obvious drug issues. I just wish she could pull through this. And I know her parents don't care.

If she struggled in school that makes the handwriting thing a bigger issue. Just print or type it and don't overthink it.

[stephanier.1765]

My son's 21 yo girlfriend can't read cursive or I should say can't read it well. She loves to read whatever I write to see if she decipher it.

[Tanaqui]

I'm sure she doesn't have the same emotional attachment to handwritten notes you do. After all, she probably speaks to people all around the world via text and email all the time! But how many letters has she sent or received?