History of Cursive Writing.

The post below on cursive writing mad me curious as to why it was developed in the first place. So I looked it up. Below is what Wikipedia has on the subject.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cursive

One thing I think is important in communicating in print whether it's in hand writing, or on a keyboard is punctuation, and spelling. I don't claim to be an expert with either, but like to think that what I write can be understood.

FWIW: Instruction of cursive writing is being discontinued by many school systems as we speak.

One wonders what the helpless folks will do when the EMP is detonated and cell phones, computers, washers, dryers, etc., etc., etc., do not work for months, years, ....

Dean

One thing that has not been discussed here and in the previous cursive post is what cursive writing can do for you or any
student.

When we write by hand we are working more areas of a brain than if we simply type or speak. We work the artistic side as well
as the portions that control language. The movement of our hand is very different than the pushing motion of typing, again
engaging more of our faculties.

Students who have problems with word problems may improve if they write out, in long hand, how they do any problem. In other
words, write out, in sentence form, every step for performing 450 divided by 12. What happens is the synapse, the minute
connections in our brains, are created or strengthened by using portions of our brains already developed but not connected. The
student can count and do basic math functions and the student can speak, but the portions of the brain that perform those
operations are very different and lack connections. By creating connections between those portions performance improves.

Improvement is seen in music and art when students write about what they do as well as doing it. The Cleveland Browns saw
improvement when they had the players use notebook in lieu of tablets.

Writing also improves more rapidly when it is done long hand rather than on a key board. I have had very good success with
students copying, long hand, lengthy sections of books the exemplify good writing. The improvement is much less when typed.

Because we are using more of our brains when we write by hand, evidence suggests that it may slow or prevent dementia.

Writing in long hand also causes us to plan in advance what we write. Because the process of rewriting is more laborious we
tend to be more careful, to make notes, to create outlines, to make note cards, etc, before we write, creating a more thoughtful
piece of work and in the end a better piece of work.

The real reason they are dropping things like this from the public school curriculum is because they are more interested in
indoctrination than in teaching the basics let alone any real skill. Also, the track record of public schools suggests they are
rather incapable of teaching much of anything.

"The real reason they are dropping things like this from the public school curriculum is because they are more interested in indoctrination than in teaching the basics let alone any real skill. Also, the track record of public schools suggests they are rather incapable of teaching much of anything."

BINGO!

Dean

"they are more interested in indoctrination than in teaching"

"The philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next." - Abraham Lincoln

I got in late on the last cursive writing post, but your comment about punctuation and spelling reminded me
of somethings I saw in the railroad museum in Durango Co.

They had some hand written, in cursive, legal documents. These were, best I recall, about 2 feet wide and 3
to 5 feet long. Beautifully done, in ink, no erasing allowed. If an error were made a single straight line
was drawn through the word, but there was a strict limit of, I think, 2 errors allow or it was disallowed
and started over. This looked like something done with a computer, every word was perfect, exact size and
straight, but it was all hand written with, I assume, a fountain or cartridge pen.

They also had a hand drawn, on a piece of white linen, complete working layout of the entire rail line from
Durango to Silverton. This was about a foot wide and about 8 feet long, designed to be carried on the job
as the track was being laid. It had all the information needed, grade, degree of bend, length of run,
things I didn't recognize... Anyone not familiar with this, it is a narrow gauge RR following a river
canyon through some of the roughest mountain terrain in America!

All this was done with what appeared to be some type of paint. Extremely detailed, tiny print but every
letter clearly recognizable, not an error or correction to be found! This was recently found, fallen behind
a file cabinet, during a remodel.

I would venture to say, I doubt very seriously that anyone alive today could equal the talent required to
create such art, that was just a job 100 years ago!

The term "cursive" was not used when I was in school. As I can recall it was called longhand or "The Palmer Method". We were required to use a fountain pen.

(quoted from post at 15:21:48 12/13/15) The term "cursive" was not used when I was in school. As I can recall it was called longhand or "The Palmer Method". We were required to use a fountain pen.

Click to expand...

I think I was taught the Palmer method, but we had to use a pencil. We weren't allowed to use a pen until seventh or eighth grade.

Well if you are so bent out of shape about writing in school they need to start teaching from the basics. Hammer, chisel and piece of stone. Then move onto copper sheets and a stylist. Things change. We no longer teach spear throwing or sword fighting because it's no longer needed or efficient. IF cursive was so great why were all the books we learned to read with PRINTED?

Rick

JimS,
I think that was the reason we had to do all our math equations with a pencil. And we did them over and over until we could do it in our sleep. I was told by doing it this way we put the gray matter between our ears to good use.

My mother had a page of hand writing done by her uncle while he was in school. At that time German families had their children taught in the German language at school in our home town. They didn't study English until they went to high school. Anyway, the hand writing was perfect. The sentence that was written over and over was Übung macht den Meister, or something to that affect.