Cursive writing? - Page 2

[velochic]

Originally Posted by ollyoxenfree 
 I think the process of handwriting helps me with processing my thoughts. I prefer simplicity, and for me it's simpler to jot out a few notes on notepaper than it is to turn to an electronic device.

I agree with this for myself.  I write for a living.  I *always* put pen to paper first.  There is something, probably tactile, that helps me get the words flowing.  I've had writer's block before and turned to a computer to try to get past it, but 99% of the time, I am more successful when I have a pen that feels good in my hand and paper that is pleasant to write on.  In fact, between dh and me, we have quite the collection of pens, pencils, and assorted papers from around the world.  I enjoy writing.  I feel a little sad that the pleasure I get from the art of writing may not be know by generations to come.  For those who have difficulty writing for whatever reason, I'm glad that there is an alternative, but I wouldn't want everyone to give it up for computer printouts.

[MJB]

My oldest son is in public school (3rd grade). They are learning cursive even though it is not a part of the state curriculum. I'm sure the lower performing schools skip it.

My middle child is in private school (1st grade) and I know they will learn cursive. 

I don't have a strong opinion on it, really. I rarely write in cursive but I would like my children to know how. 

[CatsCradle]

This thread made me smile, not so much about the cursive part, but my inability to go electronic in a lot of avenues.  I think I'm one of the last persons in my office to carry a paper calendar book around with me.  Everyone whips out their handhelds to schedule dates and I'm flipping through an good old fashioned At-A-Glance!  I like the interaction with paper and pen.  I like writing on graph paper and other types of paper.  There is an interaction with the materials that gives me a lot of satisfaction.  I like compiling various scraps of paper in books to make a record of time spent, places, people.  I know it sounds weird, but I'm fascinated in holding a book of notes and hand-written stuff with doodles.  There's a sense of actually touching history.

That being said, I have neutral feelings about cursive writing and whether or not it's taught.  I of course learned cursive when I was young, but frankly I never used it outside of primary school.  My father was always a printer (and he's 75) and I sort of modeled my handwriting after him because it was very meticulous and neat.  I do use cursive when signing my name, but other than that, I can't remember the last time I did cursive writing...maybe 35 years ago?  Mostly, though, I write everything out on legal pads before I type it.  Actual handwriting is part and parcel of my thinking process.

[ollyoxenfree]

Originally Posted by FarmerBeth 

I write in cursive when I write quickly.  My kids did learn cursive in school, starting in grade two, but did not spend as much time on it as I did. They are also learning keyboarding skills starting from grade 4.  I think the learning is valuable for brain development, both in terms of fine motor skills and developing concentration.  There have been some studies on this.  I have a link to an article about this, but there's more in depth stuff out there if you have a chance to search.

http://www.helium.com/items/1697736-cursive-handwriting

That being said, I have a son with fine motor problems.  He is finally, in grade 5, able to print both legibly and quickly, although it is definitely not pretty printing.  It took years of occupational therapy to get to this point, and some kids with learning disabilities may never reach this point.  He can write in cursive, but it's not any neater or faster for him.  I'm glad that keyboarding skills are also taught and that handing in a typed project is allowed for all kids from about grade 3 up in our school.  A child shouldn't miss out on a chance to demonstrate knowledge or ability due to poor handwriting.  So while I support teaching cursive writing as a mental exercise, I wouldn't want to go back to the good ol' days when neatness sometimes mattered above knowledge and people didn't have options as to how they physically produced their work.

Agree. 

Here's another article about handwriting helping neurological development and the learning process. It's fascinating stuff. 

It's important to recognize that the process of handwriting may contribute to the process of thinking for a lot of people, for others writing is so difficult that it interferes with their thinking. While I support teaching cursive in school, I don't think struggling students should be tortured to produce it and alternative methods should be available.

[minkin03]

I rarely write in cursive, I don't have the best penmanship and it's even worse in cursive. I often wonder if I have or had dysgraphia as a child as I grip too tightly and have an improper pencil grip. Print is just easier for me. 

That said, I have heard or more and more cases where schools are not teaching cursive. I, personally, think that cursive should still be taught. 

[Adia]

I have a mix of cursive and print. My print alone stinks and looks like a squirrel on crack's writing. My cursive is very nice but impractical. My answer to that is to go half and half. It's actually very nice, I've always gotten compliments on it.

Strangely, I have no recollection of ever being taught cursive. I thought it was just me forgetting stuff, of course I'd been taught, everyone is. Surprise surprise, my lifelong best friend, who was in all the same schools and classes as I was, doesn't remember it either, and neither do other people we knew way back, so I guess our school really didn't teach it. I know I knew it by maybe 9 or 10, but I guess I just picked it up somewhere, from parents or friends or something.

My current cursive, which I only use for writing in journals and for cards and such, I taught myself when I was 12-13. I looked at fonts on the computer and copied them until it came naturally to me. It's very beautiful, but as I said, impractical and hard to read for a lot of people unused to seeing script penmanship.

[lauren]

I really think cursive is important but I have not been able to come up with a good reason to convince our schools to keep at it. It's taught for a little while in 3rd grade and then fades away. I just believe that someone that can write well shows a skill (to employers, etc.) that is respected. I went to Catholic schools, where cursive was drilled into us for hours and hours through multiple grades. My sisters and I all had very nice handwriting, as did our parents who also went to catholic schools. I'm disappointed that my kids will not have this skill. They are not interested in learning it. :(

[BroodyWoodsgal]

I very rarely print. I very often send hand written notes. I hoard stationary and love nothing more than receiving a hand written note (my brother and mother and I correspond regularly).

My kids will home-learn cursive first. It makes me sick that so many kids aren't even learning cursive anymore. :(

[texmati]

ummm... i handwrite notes... in print. I barely learned cursive my self, and hope that my kids won't be spending time on it the future.

[lizsky]

This thread caught my eye because I hadn't ever really thought about it before!  I feel a little weird that I don't care about cursive nearly as much as a lot of the other mamas here.  Maybe I should reconsider.  To answer your questions:

I always print.  I hated learning cursive and stopped using it as soon as I was allowed to (middle school).  I also find cursive difficult to read, even if the writer has great handwriting...

I handwrite notes all the time.  

I'd like my DD to learn cursive so that if she sees it she will be able to read it.  However, I don't have super strong feelings.  It seems like lots of schools are cutting arts, music, PE, and its more important to me that DD gets those than cursive.  

[A&A]

I teach high school and 98% of my students print.  And I prefer it that way--cursive is harder to read. 

[Alphaghetti]

Originally Posted by MommyBecky 

My mother is a Montessori teacher. When I began teaching my daughter to write, she stressed teaching her cursive first. She said she used to not think it was a big deal, but after 30 yrs of teaching, she is convinced it is the way to go. She also said children will not have trouble reading print even if they learn cursive first. She told me that there is less letter confusion in cursive and everything pretty much moves in one direction, you don't really have to pick up your hand while writing cursive so it can be less confusing... I think it's probably also good for fine motor development. 

I think it's a shame that some of my friends do not even know how to write a true signature. I think it is easier to take notes in cursive (usually, it depends on how my hands are feeling!)

My son's first grade Montessori teacher agrees with your mother.  She made a lot of very good points wrt cursive, most of which you shared already. She said that it was easier for younger children to master than printing as well. She compared it to drawing. She said, "when children draw, they draw in a flowing way. They will always draw a circle before a square." This made a whole lot of sense to me.