Cursive words worksheets

What prints

The title is "Cursive Words". The instruction line asks students to trace each word, keeping the joins smooth, then write it once more on their own at the end of the line.

Each word gets one ruled line. The word is repeated across the line as many times as it fits, with the first copy dark and the rest grey. Short words repeat several times, while longer words repeat only a few. The ruling is three guides: upper rule, dashed middle, baseline, so students can see which letters stay low and which climb or hang.

When the word box is empty, the sheet prints a starter list of twelve words: cat, dog, sun, tree, home, book, play, friend, happy, garden, school and summer. At the medium size ten lines fit on a page, so the starter list runs onto a second page that is mostly blank for extra writing.

Cedarville Cursive, by Kimberly Geswein (SIL Open Font License), is the typeface used. Think of it as everyday teacher handwriting rather than an official curriculum. It follows one common style, and capitals may differ in schools that use Zaner-Bloser or D'Nealian.

The settings

• Practice. Opens on "Words".
• Your words or sentences, one per line. A text box that holds up to 400 characters, one word per line. Leave it empty to use the starter list.
• Line size. "Large (beginners)", "Medium" (the default here) or "Small (confident writers)". Large fits seven lines per page, medium ten and small thirteen.

Using it with spelling

Type this week's spelling words, one on each line, and print. The student traces and writes each word in cursive, which gives two passes at the spelling instead of one. Words you type are printed in lowercase or capital as you write them, so start a proper noun with a capital.

For a first look at joins, begin with short words that use only a few letters, such as cat and sun. Move to the longer ones when the student can write them without lifting more than necessary. Watch letters like o, v and w, which end high and need a different join than letters that end on the baseline.

The cursive writing practice sheets take the next step into whole sentences. If a single letter keeps breaking the flow, try its own page, such as cursive f.

Worked example: a Friday spelling list

Mr. Daniels gives his third graders this list: friend, garden, school, because. He types the four words, one per line, into the box and keeps Medium size.

The sheet prints four lines, each with the dark word first and grey copies after it, and the rest of the page is blank. Students trace the grey words on Monday and Wednesday. On Thursday they cover the model and write each word on the empty lines. On Friday they take the test in cursive. He notices that "because" is the hardest to join, so he adds it to the next week's list as well.

Last note

Short lists are best. Four to eight words give plenty of repeats without turning practice into a chore.

Sources

1. Common Core State Standards: Language, Grade 1 (L.1.1.a, print all upper- and lowercase letters) thecorestandards.org
2. Reading Rockets: Writing readingrockets.org