My son is skipping the 2nd grade and will start 3rd grade this fall. I noticed in one of his 2nd grade workbooks it had a section on cursive writing. We have been practicing this summer but he is just having trouble picking it up. I remember it being so easy when I first learned it but I don't remember when it was introduced to me. Are 3rd graders expected to do a lot of cursive writing or is this when they just begin to do it? I am concerned he is going to get frustrated and fall behind in writing. I also remember writing in cursive a lot in elementary but then they didn't have computers back then. I wonder if they even emphasize it anymore since I hardly even hand write these days (mostly typing on keyboards). Of the four comprehensive 2nd grade workbooks we have, only one had cursive writing. Maybe it's not that important anymore?
On a side note, my son is skipping 2nd grade because he is bored all the time being the top one in his class. His Bday is only a few weeks after the Texas Sept 1st deadline so he started kindergarten one year later than most of his friends in the same age. We were told don't skip kinder but after two school years of him being bored we decided to make the jump. He is pretty mature for his age and passed the 2nd grade exam with flying colors. So I am not concerned with him academically. For some reason the cursive writing is not something that he is catching on very well. In contrast, typing on keyboard while he did his research projects this past year was very easy for him to learn.
My daughter's school touched on it at the end of 2nd grade, but i think they will really learn it in 3rd.
Out here where i am in CA its midway in the third grade... generally start just after the winter holiday. Hope that helps.
Cursive writing is just introduced in third grade here. Some of the more advanced 2nd graders started it but they are not expected to write in cursive until the middle to the end of third grade.
If he is having trouble grasping it then let him go back to printing. Instead, have him do a lot of tracing. Get a fun coloring book with pictures he would like. Then have him trace the outlines of the pictures with a crayon. When he gets good at that, have him trace with a marker. The tracing is a fun way to get hand and finger dexterity without having to drill boring letters.
Another fun book is the Draw Write Now books. They teach the kids how to draw pictures simply and also have sections on handwriting. I home schooled my daughter and she had trouble with cursive in third grade so we dropped it and did a lot of tracing. When we picked it up again a few months later she zipped right through it! Also, sometimes kids just have to mature mentally. If it's not clicking now, then let it be. He might surprise you in a month!
My daughter is going into 4th grade this year and she did only a little cursive writing in 3rd. We are in Minnesota, so there may be some differences between states. I agree that there is less emphasis on handwriting than there was when I was in school.
Per my Daughter's school: (public school)
It is introduced & taught in 2nd Grade.
It is further taught and practiced in 3rd grade more intensively.
It is then, further taught and practiced, still... in 4th Grade.
THIS is what, my daughter's cursive time-line has been, per it being taught to her & her learning it.
My Daughter has excellent writing and penmanship... but still, she is currently in 4th grade, and she is still learning it. Not a full-blown rocket-scientist about it.
But, her Teachers say she has excellent handwriting/cursive.
At this age, the hand dexterity/fine-motor skills for cursive, is still developing. Some kids write it real well already, like my daughter. But not all. There is a variety of mastery of it.
In some schools here it's taught in 3rd, some in 4th, some way back in K & 1st, and some not at all.
Ring up the front office and ask them about it, to find out your school's common practice :)
ALSO... if you're not using it already... check out http://www.hwtears.com/hwt make sure to watch some of the tutorials (great tips).
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I introduce cursive at the end of second grade and then really teach it in the third grade. By the second semester of third grade I have them write everything in cursive.
We live not too far from you, and my son started cursive at the end of last year. This year they are going to do it in more depth. All they did was each letter individually, not all joined together yet. My son is going into 3rd grade now.
I would defnitley practice cursive before he goes into third grade - you don't want him to be behind on something silly like that
From what I can tell, cursive is barely taught at all anymore in a majority of school districts. McKinney ISD touches on it but doesn't teach it. My 16 year old went to school through third grade in NJ and they taught it in 2nd or 3rd grade so she is "fluent" in cursive and it's her preferred writing method. Her TX friends are clueless and have a hard time reading anything she writes. My 12 year old grew up in the MISD school system and self-taught herself to write her name in cursive but that's it -- she hasn't a clue how to write in cursive. I think this is very sad . . .
At our daughters elementary school the more advanced 2nd graders started cursive in about March.. But it was more of an introduction and during the summer the kids were encouraged to practice.
But do not worry because in 3rd grade they all seem to even out.. You end up pretty much knowing who is going to be in the different groups after a couple of weeks, but then they can shift groups again at about 6 to 8 weeks.. I is a strange grade.. The kids that were immature all of a sudden get it.. Things begin to click for the students.
My son just finished 3rd grade in GCISD and I they covered cursive, but he didn't HAVE to write in cursive for projects, etc. Even in 5th grade (my daughter just finished 5th grade), she didn't do much cursive writing...she did some, and I think there were a few papers where they told them to write in cursive, but not like they made a big switch to cursive and you weren't allowed to write in print anymore.
My kids attend school in Grand Prairie and the first two learned cursive in 3rd grade. However, my 9 year old just completed 2nd and is going into 3rd and they started working on cursive in second grade. I don't know if it was the teacher, the school, or just a change but she started learning how to write cursive last school year. The schools do start teaching the kids how to put the little "hooks" on the letters to prepare for cursive in kinder.
Mine were never taught cursive, which sucks because they can barely read it!
My son completed cursive in 2nd. They are expected to do all cursive in 3rd.
Oddly, I have an office mate who was in the same exact situation--skipped second, they realized she didn't "do" cursive and they moved her back...but that was quite a while ago....
Have him keep working on it.
My daughter had to learn cursive last year in 3rd grade. They didn't spend much time on it and her teacher never insisted that they use cursive in their work. Personally, I think it is a complete waste of time to teach cursive at all! There is no academic value to it and typing is becoming the most utilized and prefered form of writing.
Be prepared for him to just not get it. Some just don't.
In some states it's 2nd and in some 3rd.
His hand/eye coordination and fine motor skills are still developing. I homeschool mine and he has terrible times with cursive, he's 10 in 5th grade, his printing stinks too. We have practiced every day for two years. Mine also is pretty quick on the keyboard. I still make him write things out.
My now senior in high school has terrible handwriting too, print and cursive. It hasnt' held her back any though.
Our school district is not emphasizing cursive writing...which is something I STRONGLY disagree with...in my opinion we have become far too dependent upon technology to do our "communicating" for us..
Fairfax County gives the "basics" for cursive in 2nd grade and really doesn't follow through with it in any other grade...this is something we have been working on at home and it's been a battle...a HUGE battle...but for me, it's important...
We have used pencil and pen "forms" to help the kids hold the pencils easier..which reminds me - thank you! I need to purchase more!!
My son just finished 2nd grade and they only touched on cursive writing VERY briefly - just introduced it. Did not really make them practice it much.
-L.
Check with your school
My son is in entering 5th grade Spec Ed and they NEVER went over it. I actually asked his teacher about at the end of last year b/c I was writing something in cursive and he looked at it and asked me "what language is that?"
His teacher said "cursive doesn't seem to be that important anymore."
That being said -- that kid types 30 words a minute.... faster than his Dad!
In Texas - it's introduced "supposedly" in 3rd grade. If you google search "TEKS" you can scroll down and read all that kids are supposed to be taught in 1st grade, in 2nd grade, in 3rd grade. I can't find anything in 2nd grade that mentions cursive. So if a teacher taught/introduced it, they weren't required to by Texas law. In 3rd grade, I do notice it says that the student is expected to: "write legibly in cursive script with spacing between words in a sentence" (by the end of the year).
I say "supposedly" because this is one thing that sometimes is put-off until the last weeks of school. I taught 2nd and 3rd grades. I never once taught cursive. Granted, I taught in a poor area where kids came to me with very little comprehension ability with their reading. Math skills were very sad. We spent the whole year preparing them for that darn TAKS test and even then, many were not ready. If you wanted, google search "TAKS RELEASE TESTS" and click on an old 3rd grade reading exam. You'll be able to see what the test will look like, come March/April next year. (I hear they're changing the name of the test. I don't know about the dynamics of the new test, I've been out of teaching for 3 years now).
So yes, they should be teaching it in 3rd. But not every teacher finds the time to do so. Your son might do better to learn this from you.
I know my mom is a teacher and the school has fully fazed out cursive and is just doing block letters and touch typing.
What was the advancement test like? Did you get the questions for it?
Background: My daughter is currently enrolled in 1st grade at a small private school in the Richardson School district. Her birthday is Sept. 14, so she missed the Sept. 1 cut off.
She is mature for her age (she plays with other kids on our block ranging from 6 grade to KG, girls are in grades 4 and 6.) She is also very tall for her age and is pretty much their size as well.
Her current school does a grade level ahead in reading, so she will have completed 2nd grade material by the end of the year. She also recently has been doing 3rd grade math.
We will unfortunately have to put her in public school next year.
I was told that elementary schools WILL NOT do advancement in particular subjects. (What? Would it be SO difficult to allow her to go to another classroom for JUST reading and math??!!!) argh.
I am having her tested at her current school to see if she can get into the next grade there so that next year the public school would HAVE to put her into the 3rd grade.
The other alternative would be for her to go to the local magnet school (with smaller class sizes and where they do in-school REACH). We applied there but will not find out for a month or so.
Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated.
It was introduced in second grade but really focused on it in third.
I would talk to his third grade teachers about it. My son's was of the opinion that nobody writes in cursive anymore but to sign their name so she didn't care at all about it. Yours may require it though.
Also-if you have a GIEP for your son you can put in there that he must not be required to write in cursive. You can also request that he have the ability to type all assignnets.
One more thing-if you do want him to learn it there is a right and wrong way to teach it. Our teachers requested we don't teach it at home before 2nd grade b/c it is hard to undo if you are doing it wrong. Attention must be payed to where you start/stop for example. I would just get one of those workbooks with detailed instruction and he can work on a letter a day.
At Bethesda Chrisitian (Haltom City, Tx) they start in Kinder and the kids only use cursive, which I think is awesome! The principal had done a lot of research on handwriting and it has been said that the earlier a child learns it, the better their handwriting will be for life. It also has other positive benefits, but that was the biggest. There are a few schools around the country that have started it in Kinder and that's what they are basing it on. I know this is REALLY rare though, obviously from the other responses. I think it's so sad that some don't even teach it at all. Pretty soon writing with a pen period will be a thing of the past I suppose!
As you can tell from the answers, it depends on the school district if and when cursive is taught. Cheerful M gave good suggestions for helping your son gain dexterity. I would add that it's common for children to gain the ability to use their fingers to print and or write. My granddaughter is going into the 6th grade and still has difficulty writing legibly in spite of extra help. Her fingers just don't work very well combined with her being in a big hurry to be done. I suggest that since your son is good at keyboarding writing may just be too slow for him.
