Cursive+Handwriting

====One very exciting thing that happens in third grade is that your child will learn how to write in cursive. We teach the letters based on the way they are formed using the Loops and Other Groups program. The first group we teach is the "clock climbers". These include the letters a, d, g, q, and c. Your child will be coming home with cursive packets that have the letters that they have been taught. On the back of all the pages will be blank, lined pages that your child will be encouraged to practice on a regular basis at home. Cursive can be very challenging for many students in the beginning. They will write very slow as they are still learning to form the letters correctly. I ask that you encourage your child to practice the letters that have been taught already in school. However, please refrain from teaching them any other letters that they have not learned in school yet. Over the years, you and I have probably formed bad habits that we do not want our students to pick up on. I tell the students that once they learn the proper way to form the letters and they are doing it fluently, then they can add their own little twists and quirks to the letters if they chose to do so. Happy writing! ====

The students have learned all of the lowercase letters in cursive. We have a few more uppercase letters to go but are almost there. The front board has been transformed and most writing by me will be done in cursive. The students are encouraged to write in cursive often. Whenever they write their names, they will be required to write in cursive and soon most of their writing will be in cursive as well. I appreciate any support you can offer at home.