Do your kids sometimes make you remember things from your childhood that you had buried away deep down in your memory? Little Coco is going to be starting elementary school in September. Though I think she is already having problems sleeping with excitement, there is a tiny cloud on the horizon. This summer we need to work on her cursive writing. In France, this is a major skill you need to have mastered for your first year at elementary school. This totally brought back to me the hours I spent as a 6-year-old, practicing very carefully over and over on writing my name in ‘Schreibschrift’ as we called it at my school in Germany.
I was really surprised that cursive writing was still being taught. I thought it had been phased out roughly around the same time as mullets and stone washed jeans. With the arrival of computers everywhere I had thought that cursive writing would have become a forgotten skill. I thought wrong: cursive writing is, apparently, really important as it is the fastest way of writing and of note taking! Who knew?
Anyway I have been enjoying brushing up on my cursive writing (which is actually really difficult!), and I am sure that by the end of the summer Coco will have it mastered like a charm. What about in your country? Do schools in other countries still teach cursive writing or is this totally a French thing?
Comments (6)
I’m born in the Middle East, am from India and lived a fair number of years in Australia, and in every country, there’s been cursive writing. I’m glad because it’s cute as much as fun.
Hope Coco has a lovely time in school!
As a french family living in London, my girl entered a Bristish school last september, both learning how to read and write in English and French. As you may know the 2 systems are very different, and so is the writing.
My girl learns to write French in cursive and English in lower cases letters ! The teacher is impressed by the way she can write, and likes how her work is always beautifuly presented.
I guess this French THING (cursive handwriting) can teach children to be careful and focus on “nice” work. When you read French adults’ handwriting, you realize no one is now using the cursive letters anymore ! Was this all really usefull ?
My daughter has just finished reception (pre-school – 5 year olds) in the UK, and – even though last September I thought it was impossible – she now has (almost) perfect cursive writing. I don’t think it’s the case for all schools in the UK, but I do know that some do teach cursive writing from the outset.
We live in Mexico. My mom learned cursive writing when she was in school but by the time I started elementary school they weren’t teaching it anymore. Cursive writing is back now and kids are learning it again in schools starting at kindergarten.
My kids have not started learning cursive yet. I wonder if it’s unique to their school or if all UK students are exempt from learning this. I remember learning it in school when I was around age 10, and I hated it! (I’m still so rubbish at it!) I hope my kids learn it in school because they certainly won’t be learning it from their mama!
My eldest boy is 5 and about to move up to Year 2 in England. I don’t think they do any cursive writing at his school. I wish they would as the presentation of his work is awful and it would teach him to spend a little time over it. He is a bright little boy but he is always in such a hurry!