Pen World and Deborah Basel Score Again

The October issue of Pen World is out and brings the second article in the series on handwriting by Deborah Basel. If you have wondered about the value of cursive handwriting and the relevance of instruction, this article will give you some great food for thought. Schools have been eliminating instruction of cursive handwriting for many years. Find out why so many people believe that is a huge mistake.

This issue also features an article by Robert Rose, retired MD and avid promoter of handwriting fluency as a cure for the persistent lack of success with reading instruction that plagues our schools. How many legible letters of the alphabet can your kindergartner write in twenty seconds? Count the letters and multiply by 3 to convert the number to a Letters-Per-Minute Score. Children who were able to write at the rate of 40 LPM, were reading at or above grade level.

Dr. Rose and several groups of teachers have shown several times, this easy-to-measure ability has a strong connection to reading success. Most little ones show interest in learning to write around the age of four. Make your child an "expert" alphabet writer, and rest easy. He or she will learn to read and be successful in the classroom.

The important goal is fluency no matter what the alphabet. If you want to learn how, Google "Learn To Teach Handwriting" and visit Peterson Directed Handwriting on the web.