Cursive Confusion

[deltagal]

I have successfully immersed my soon to be 12 yo in Cursive Confusion and am now pondering the best way to lead him out of this state. He has been working on cursive for several years. He initially began using HWT, then we switched to another program because we had used up all the HWT workbooks. Now, the Draw and Write Through History uses yet another style of cursive. He is still not able to read cursive OR write in cursive on his own. He prints. And now he's totally confused. The lessons in Preparing require several days of cursive writing which is just what he needs. He has to have me write out the cursive assignments for him to copy, and I find myself wondering, "Hhmmmm how should I write this?" BUT I need to move him to independence on this and I'm just wondering what to do or where to begin. Any thoughts?

[mamaloves4]

Hi Florence,

Oh, just to say---I am not a cursive expert, but we did use Modern Handwriting Beginning Cursive and Cursive Practice. they were two little workbooks that cost me $10. They were quick to work through. If I were you, I would start over (I feel really bad saying that--we don't need more work thrown on us), but sometimes when there is confusion we need to go back to the beginning and tell our children it's 'take two' time. I did that this year with Math. I switched math because my oldest dau memorized the formulas with math, but didn't grasp the concept. So I put her in a level where she could be successful, but didn't make her feel 'behind', we worked our way through the lessons at a slower pace, BUT went through very beginning concepts of math and place value and why we need to carry and regroup. That was our 'take two' and it has worked. I feel she has grasped the concepts better.

Anyway, that is our story and I hope it helps, I am sure you will get other great ideas--this is a fun and encouraging place to be.

jess

[my3sons]

I think a quick trip through Cheerful Cursive would work wonders! It is a super-easy program to use, and your ds could probably do it independently. In addition to writing cursive from a cursive model, it has them write print from cursive, and cursive from print too - and it also has them reading different kinds of cursive. Otherwise, you could just write the cursive he needs to write in whatever form you think he'd be most successful with and have him try his hand at copying it.

In Christ,
Julie

[Carrie]

Florence,

We had a similar situation with our oldest son in that we used Handwriting Without Tears with him for cursive for several years, producing a big scrawling handwriting that he couldn't seem to remember how to do correctly. Then, we did 2 years of Bob Jones handwriting, which confused him more. We've found that Cheerful Cursive does a good job of teaching correct formation and teaching kiddos how to read cursive. It has them read a sentence or words in cursive and then print the word in manuscript below. This is an excellent teaching tool. The workbook also shows all the different ways a cursive letter can be formed. Last, it is a pretty type of cursive in a smaller, but not too small" font size. We've had good luck with it. Until your son gets all the way through Cheerful Cursive, I wouldn't require any cursive handwriting from him. So, he'll be on a cursive break for a year while he works through the workbook.

At the end of Cheerful Cursive, the following year make sure to have your son do the copywork assigned each day in our guides in cursive (as mentioned in the plans). This will help cement the skill.

Blessings,
Carrie

[deltagal]

We had a similar situation with our oldest son in that we used Handwriting Without Tears with him for cursive for several years, producing a big scrawling handwriting that he couldn't seem to remember how to do correctly. Then, we did 2 years of Bob Jones handwriting, which confused him more. We've found that Cheerful Cursive does a good job of teaching correct formation and teaching kiddos how to read cursive. It has them read a sentence or words in cursive and then print the word in manuscript below. This is an excellent teaching to'ol. The workbook also shows all the different ways a cursive letter can be formed. Last, it is a pretty type of cursive in a smaller, but not too small" font size. We've had good luck with it. Until your son gets all the way through Cheerful Cursive, I wouldn't require any cursive handwriting from him. So, he'll be on a cursive break for a year while he works through the workbook.

Hi Carrie,

Oh this is too funny we went from HWT to BJ, as well. He'll LOVE going on a "cursive break". You just made the re-learning phase a very EASY sell.

Thanks for your input.

[Carrie]

Florence,

I had to smile at our similar cursive path. My son was thrilled to be on a cursive break too, so I can identify. After a steady year of Cheerful Cursive, and after he's done one year of the cursive copywork scheduled in our guides, your son may still not love cursive (but at least he'll be able to read it and write it). At that point, I let my son choose whether he'd rather print or write in cursive. Most men actually print. Very few write in cursive. So, if your son can eventually sign his name in cursive, ultimately that is all the cursive most men require to function in life.

Blessings,
Carrie