Italic Handwriting Series Book A

Rating:
Summary: A fun and easy way for children to learn to write
Review: I have tried several writing programs for my daughter. This one beats them all. She enjoys the lessons and they are not so difficult she wants to give up. I plan on using the series until it is complete and find this is well worth the investment.

Rating:
Summary: Teach this to your kids
Review: I lived in Portland, OR, where the authors convinced the school district to test this method in place of older printing and writing curriculum.

About a year after teaching began, I was at a pizza parlor between Portland and a suburban town. There had been a kid's contest or drawing of some sort that required written entry forms, and a large group of winning forms was pinned to a wall. The result of this method was graphically, forcefully and wonderfully on display: all the entrants with Portland addresses (1st and 2nd graders, I think) had filled their blanks with beautifully clear, if tentative, italic printing, while kids from the suburban town had provided the usual near-illegible scrawl. I was astonished.

I can't think of a better, clearer testimony to the practical effect of this method and these books than the entry forms on that wall. If your kids need help with their handwriting, or are interested in improving it, get these books. Even better would be to convince your school district to investigate this method.

And no, italic printing and script WILL NOT strip individuality and "personality" from a kid's writing; it will make it easier to express it.

Rating:
Summary: Fine book, but be informed
Review: You should know this about the book. It is for pre-school or kindergarten. It is for printing in italic style. If you want your child to learn "block printing", this is not the book for you. Personally, I think a child should know how to do block printing, sometimes called traditional manuscript. If you buy into this series, you'll want the instruction manual too. If you just want to teach/learn the italic cursive, start with book D in this series. Be warned. If you or your child likes the "loopy" cursive, this is not for you. Italic cursive, starting in book D, does not have loops. It looks a bit different. It is a major alternative to the old fashioned way of doing cursive. Remember those goofy capital "Q"s that looked like a numberal "2"? Italic cursive gives you a Q that looks like a Q, unlike what I saw as a child. I recommend considering this series.