Teaching Your Kids to Write in Cursive
Imagine this!
Your family is standing inside the rotunda at the National Archives Museum in Washington, D.C., looking at the original Declaration of the United States. It's beautiful and awe-inspiring, but can your children read the elegant English Roundhand Script used by the nobility at that time?
Having the ability to read historic documents like the Declaration of Independence as well as Great Aunt Sue's prize-winning peach pie recipe, Mom's sewing notes, and Grandma's letters are reason enough to teach your kids to write in cursive. But let's also look at the physical, neurological, and academic benefits that will help your children succeed in school and in life.
The easiest and most successful path to learning cursive is to start by teaching your children italic handwriting. Why? It's simple, really. Both print and cursive letters are formed in the same way and thus look the same. So, writers only need to learn the printed letter form and then connect the letters to form words in cursive.
Not all signatures can be done digitally. Throughout their lives, your kids will need this essential skill to sign legal and medical documents, to sign to accept a registered letter at the post office, to sign contracts and leases, and more.
The coordinated and rhythmic movements of connecting the letters help children develop muscle memory or the ability to form letters and words without consciously thinking about the process and, thus, boost reading and spelling skills. This also allows your writers to concentrate more on the content and less on the how-to, which helps them to gain a better understanding of syntax or the arrangement of words and phrases into sentences; this includes basic grammar rules, word order, etc. Ultimately, this helps your kids develop into stronger and more creative writers.
The ability to write and understand cursive handwriting connects your children to the foundation of our great country by blessing them with the opportunity to travel back in time to colonial Philadelphia to read the words and signatures of our founding fathers.
And speaking of signatures, encourage your writers to experiment with adding flourishes to their names to create unique signatures.
The many benefits of learning and writing in cursive italics that work together to help your children achieve academic success will also serve them well throughout their lives.
