Would You Teach Your Child To Write In Cursive?

[RuiFromUK]

I wish I had been taught cursive handwriting early in my schooling rather than teachers reprimanding me for trying to write with the left hand.

[flatline]

I'm more concerned that my kids are able to read other people's writing (including cursive). I'm less concerned about what kind of hand they use for their own writing.

 

We write lots of notes and make lots of lists in our house and so my 5-year-old can already read some cursive. I'm sure he and his sister will eventually write lists and notes of their own, perhaps even in cursive.

 

 

--flatline

[jar]

iPads are about as useless as (bleep) on a boar hog.

 

But not to worry. Other nations still teach cursive handwriting and they can always hire the US kids to cut their grass.

[GabrielleDuVent]

iPads are about as useless as (bleep) on a boar hog.

 

 

Well, apparently, "iPads are awesome and they make [the speaker] learn so much" was the opinion I heard in the high school freshman class I recently had the chance to see. You might be just as outdated as me.

 

My father asked a question that drove Apple clerks to the wall, though:

 

"Okay, what is it for?"

"It can do a lot of things! Watch videos, read, surf the net..."

"Okay, but what is it for?"

"Huh?"

"Computers are there to carry out programmed arithmetic or logical operations. iPod is for listening to music. iPhone is to talk to people. What is iPad for?"

-"Well, you see, it's for a lot of things..."

[Pengrump]

I hated learning cursive in school, as I am a left-hander who was taught to write (badly) with my right hand. I found, however, when I started using fountain pens regularly in high school that even my uncoordinated scrawl become legible. So I wrote and continue to write cursive.

 

Since I write fiction, I have to get everything onto a computer or tablet to publish it. But I still write my first draft (and often second draft as well) in cursive. It's not that my cursive is beautiful but that the experience of writing cursive with a fountain pen on paper actually helps me write better prose. I have written a few thing directly on my laptop, and they were inferior In fact, I had to print them out and correct them with a pen and then re-enter them.

 

I'm not a scientist, so I don't know the impact of learning cursive on the brain. But I do know from experience that it is linked for me with a higher level of literacy and creativity than keyboarding is.

 

I am too old to have children, but if I'd had children, I'd have taught them cursive, not as a school subject the way I was taught, but as an enjoyable way of spending time together, writing.

[RobertP]

iPads are about as useless as (bleep) on a boar hog.

 

But not to worry. Other nations still teach cursive handwriting and they can always hire the US kids to cut their grass.

 

I wouldn't go quite that far... I find mine invaluable for email, skype and necessary online research etc. when I am out and about, in meetings, with clients without having to have a laptop with me. They are extremely convenient.

 

But beyond that... I agree with you. I HATE trying to take notes with mine and anything other than online communication and surfing is pretty much pointless (I have even run out of killer sudokus to do now).

 

My notes are always handwritten - I can scribble and sketch so much faster than tapping away on an iPad (or laptop for that matter) - and are then edited and condensed as they are transferred to some form of electronic form as meeting minutes that get sent out.

 

Cursive is not my thing, but even fast, my handwriting is pretty legible for anyone interested. And if I can take my time, it is occasionally actually quite neat! Thinking back to university time - when speed was of the essence to get down all the stuff the prof was describing - I used to be able to write legibly without even looking at my notepad. That way I could watch the stuff being written on the boards, and listen and take notes all in one.

[migo984]

Where I work none of us have a PC. We all have netbooks. The other day in a meeting of about 25 people, I noticed that everyone was typing away, taking notes on their netbooks, heads down, talking at their screens, making absolutely no eye contact. (Except me that is. I was the Luddite in the room with a fountain pen, handwritng my notes and actually engaging with the other participants) . And who ever picks up a phone and talks anymore? Or even emails? It's all about IM. Finally, all the CVs I get to read through are always word processed, never hand-written (a bad thing IMO). But that is the world of work for which we have to prepare our children.

 

ps I own an iPad and another tablet and I love them for research, web surfing, sharing information etc. But NOT for "writing", taking notes or otherwise communicating.

Edited September 24, 2013 by migo984

[requiescat]

Haven't, wouldn't know how to (although I was taught in grade school). The kidlet seems to be able to read cursive all right from exposure even if she writes very neat print; and frankly the fact that her very neat print is more legible than my scrawl or (God knows) her father's is good enough for me.

 

To be quite honest, as a former math teacher (USA), I was way more concerned with teaching her math. I did some supplementary math workbooks with her in the first few grades, on the grounds that asking for 10 min./math/day vs. the hours of computer games she wants to play is not, actually, cruel and unusual punishment. Also, I told her about Cantorian infinities.

[Sailor Kenshin]

As a teacher I think this is just one of the many, many problems with the "common core".

Learning to write in cursive is good for you. So is learning basics, like reading and math. Too many people lack the patience to go through what they see as boring drills, so school boards just cave and let them do whatever's easiest and 'fun.'

 

And then we moan about kids not being able to read, write, or make change.

[GClef]

This day we write!

Amen! This day, we wri...um, wait.....

 

http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m496/gclef1114/Tutuguans/IMAG0234_zpscc11d255.jpg

[RuiFromUK]

Just a quick question to see if some knows: what book would you recommend for an adult to learn/practice cursive handwriting? I just checked Amazon and there are hundreds of them so I am a bit lost.

 

Thank you very much.

[Felix1]

Great post, Amber.

 

Agree!

[amberleadavis]

While I am not a teacher, I have three kids of "cursive" age, and a teach law day classes to students. My children are learning cursive and I encourage students to learn to write. Failing to learn to read and write cursive, IMO identifies the a person as being poorly educated and poor, because anyone in private school or home school is going to learn to read and write it, and anyone in public school that can afford it will have their child taught to read and write in cursive.

[rwilsonedn]

Like other experiences that are vanishing from public schools, cursive writing is coming to mean something beyond just being a choice of input formats. It is an indicator of educational, and, sadly, class background. If it's not done already, the day isn't far off when prospective employers and admissions officers can ask for a handwriting sample and use it to pigeon-hole people into the expensively-educated or the publicly-educated class. Not at all fair, but very efficient and accurate enough.

So yes, I would certainly see that my kids had cursive writing, along with effective reading, mathematics, the sciences and humanities. We--all but the wealthy, that is--are gradually defining away our cultural heritage in the name of budget compliance.

ron

Edited September 24, 2013 by rwilsonedn

[RJR]

What do you think?

 

 

 

There are many vectors to the heart of this topic, cultural and societal as well as a number of positive studies on developmental influences and creativity. As someone here has mentioned already, this idea comes up regularly and will likely continue to be a topic (I hope) as long as there is a FPN.

 

For the sake of diversity here is a metaphorically less traveled road in this debate:

 

The fountain pen and cursive were destined for each other. Sure you can print with a fountain pen, but this is the equivalent to owning a sports car that is merrily used to drive 3 blocks to the grocery store. A sports car deserves, was designed and manufactured, to be taken out on the highway occasionally and cursive is the fountain pen equivalent of the open highway. The twists, the turns and loops, the long open stretches with the wind in your hair and nothing but the open page ahead, cursive is the fountain pen’s true calling and ultimate expression.

 

RJR

Edited September 24, 2013 by RJR

[flatline]

 

Well, apparently, "iPads are awesome and they make [the speaker] learn so much" was the opinion I heard in the high school freshman class I recently had the chance to see. You might be just as outdated as me.

 

My father asked a question that drove Apple clerks to the wall, though:

 

"Okay, what is it for?"

"It can do a lot of things! Watch videos, read, surf the net..."

"Okay, but what is it for?"

"Huh?"

"Computers are there to carry out programmed arithmetic or logical operations. iPod is for listening to music. iPhone is to talk to people. What is iPad for?"

-"Well, you see, it's for a lot of things..."

 

Based on my experience with tablets, tablets are for playing games, consuming media (music, movies, ebooks, etc), and web browsing.

 

Of course if you are happy doing this things on a laptop, desktop, or not at all, then you may not have use for a tablet.

 

I will occasionally play games on my tablet, but for all other things I prefer my laptop. The tablet mostly gets used by the kids.

 

--flatline

Edited September 24, 2013 by flatline

[GabrielleDuVent]

Where I work none of us have a PC. We all have netbooks. The other day in a meeting of about 25 people, I noticed that everyone was typing away, taking notes on their netbooks, heads down, talking at their screens, making absolutely no eye contact. (Except me that is. I was the Luddite in the room with a fountain pen, handwritng my notes and actually engaging with the other participants) . And who ever picks up a phone and talks anymore? Or even emails? It's all about IM. Finally, all the CVs I get to read through are always word processed, never hand-written (a bad thing IMO). But that is the world of work for which we have to prepare our children.

 

ps I own an iPad and another tablet and I love them for research, web surfing, sharing information etc. But NOT for "writing", taking notes or otherwise communicating.

 

As much as I wanted to be iPad friendly, it just stinked for research (for me). It doesn't load equation-loaded pdfs very well. That, and I have to scroll like crazy, and if an equation is referenced from two pages previous, scrolling becomes a pain. My father's research is very mathematics-oriented, and I think that's why he didn't like the idea of tablets. He seems to regard them as not much more than fancy toys. (We're pretty guilty of killing trees, though, so to all eco-friendly peeps out there, my apologies.)

 

Most phone calls I get are telemarketing, which get hung up fairly quickly. E-mails are short and not very personal. As much as I want to be pro-tech, some things should be kept old-style, for emotional reasons. But it was only after a few experiences that the lesson was driven home for me.

 

But most people nowadays seem to lack the ability to write, or at least write well. So before cursive shindig, perhaps students need to learn how to write succinctly, accurately, and dynamically. All very difficult to do, of course, so it won't be happening.

 

Quoth one of my former acquaintances (currently age 20): "Writing is pointless". As much as I'd like to think this is not a popular opinion, it seems to be that many people think so nowadays. Also, it would be difficult to write well without reading good examples, and the brokers of the "good examples" are all closing shop.

 

I'm not saying modern civilisation is doomed, but in terms of literary legacies, we're going to be fairly stagnant for the next few decades unless something major is done.

[Cepasaccus]

Is learning computer stuff really usefull? Or is it out of date when the kids come out of school?

[flatline]

Is learning computer stuff really usefull? Or is it out of date when the kids come out of school?

 

The vast majority of "computer stuff" is trouble-shooting and reading comprehension, neither of which will ever lose their usefulness.

 

Anything that encourages analytical thinking is worth doing.

 

--flatline

[fiberdrunk]

I once read a book about graphology called Handwritiing Analysis by Andrea McNichol. It briefly mentioned that in the early 80's the president of Mexico had banned cursive writing (it didn't state why, and I have no idea if that's still true today). Since handwriting (and especially cursive writing) is unique to each person like a fingerprint, the author argued that the more tyrannical a society becomes, the more individualism gets squeezed out of the picture. Throwing cursive out is just another symptom of collectivism, which is largely about sameness.

Edited September 25, 2013 by fiberdrunk