Thursday, July 9, 2015

CursiveLogic {a Schoolhouse Review Crew review}

Confession time:  I've been horrible about teaching cursive.

There.  I said it.

It isn't that I don't think cursive is important.  {I do.}  It is more that I was so totally overwhelmed, back in the time period where my teens should have been learning cursive, that I didn't do it then.  And when I have tried to work with them later, they don't like how slow the programs move, or how babyish they seem to be.

So I was thrilled, thrilled, thrilled to receive the CursiveLogic Workbook.  Especially when I read about how CursiveLogic got started.  Linda was a reading tutor, working with a 23-year-old student with learning disabilities, who told her he wanted to learn to sign his name.  She tried to figure out a way to get him up to speed quickly, and this handwriting program was born.


I've been having my 18-year-old student use this, and we are liking the results.  We've tried some other things in the past, but it is just so hard to try to make it work when the program is intended to be used with 6-year-olds.

CursiveLogic is written especially for older students, though I'm not sure I agree with their definition of that.   The primary market is for ages 8-12, but I think that this is best for more like ages 10+.  

The focus is on groups of letters that have the same basic shape, and you learn them all at once.  That means you are connecting letters together from the very beginning as well.  We both love that.



That also means you can write actual words in the very first lesson.  Other really excellent programs we have looked at in the past don't get you to that point until you've been at it for at least a few weeks, which is totally fine for elementary ages.  My adult son, however, doesn't have the patience to practice a single letter for days on end.  Let's get on with it, is his usual eye-rolling response.

The teaching is IN the workbook itself, so if your student is capable of working independently, this is a program where they definitely can do that.  I do not have to teach it.


My son's first comment when he started using this program was, "Oh, I like this!  Go in, get it done.  No tracing letters in the air and making me feel like I'm six.  They aren't wasting my time or patronizing me.  You need to get workbooks for my brothers too."

After you work through all of the lowercase letters, you get to my absolute favorite page in the entire workbook:


Instead of going through and systematically learning all of the upper case letters, you start practicing your initials, and your signature.

Love it.

Because really, while I do want my teens to be at least competent in writing cursive, I really truly want them to be able to sign their names without thinking about it.  A bit like that tutoring student I mentioned at the beginning.

And yes, at that point, you do go through and learn all of the capital letters.  And that part is great too.


There isn't a ton of practice in the workbook itself, but there are other resources available, like the Practice Pages available for free on their homepage.  If you need more practice, you can get it.


Bottom line:  If you have a child in middle school and up who hasn't really learned cursive, I think CursiveLogic is a no-nonsense approach that could be exactly what you need. 



CursiveLogic Review



Crew Disclaimer

1 comment:

Shannon Alexander said...

I am going to teach my daughter cursive this year. This looks like a great workbook for it. I love that they get to practice their signature! I remember doing that as a kid just for fun.