If You Won't Teach My Child To Write Cursive, I Will.


I was sitting with my sister, mother of two boys, 8 and 9, when she casually dropped a huge bomb on me.

Sister: ...Well now that they're not teaching cursive anymore...

Me: Blasphemy. When did that happen? 

Sister: This is not new. Cursive is considered obsolete.

Me: What asshole decided that? Cursive is a fundamental of the English written language! 

Me: Obsolete? It's how I write! So my son will not be taught how to read the way I was taught to write? What kind of dumbassery is that?


I tried to get my head around it. But I couldn't. After a little research, I learned that cursive was dropped, beginning in 2010, due to Common Core State Standards, adopted by 43 states and the District of Columbia. The initiative required "keyboarding skills," but made no mention of cursive, prompting school districts to limit or drop cursive. 

Are children working on computers so much that they're not writing by hand? 

Seriously, how will my son be able to read the love letters between his parents or grandparents later in life? How will he be able to read anything I hand write? I write in cursive. It's what I was taught. Less that 20 years ago!  

What the Hell?

I just can't get my head around it.

                                 

Thankfully, five years later, it seems state representatives are seeing the error of their ways, and bringing cursive back. The states breaking away from the Core Standards to reimplement cursive into the curriculum, include:

Arkansas
Tennessee
Florida
California
Georgia
North Carolina
Ohio (Implementing Cursive as part of an art program to be taught in art class)

Unfortunately, my state is not on that list. Yet..

For me, cursive is something my child needs to learn, so if the school system won't teach him, I sure as hell will. 




April is an award-winning writer and blogger. Her work has been published in over ten countries and four languages. From books to newspapers, to print/online magazines and everything in between, you can find her work. For more on April, Visit AprilMcCormick.com