How (and Why) Cursive is Taught in a Montessori Classroom
Cursive is now back in the Ontario school curriculum so we thought it would be helpful to know how Montessori schools teach cursive.
You'll notice that the Montessori approach is gradual. It also engages multiple senses - touch, sound, and sight.
This hands-on process helps to slowly guide the children better than just copying letters on lined-sheets of paper.
If your child is struggling with cursive, you might find it helpful to introduce some of these tools and ideas at home.
First, why cursive?
Dr. Montessori found that the flowing, connected strokes of cursive writing supports natural hand movement and makes it easier for children to write and distinguish letters. All cursive letters begin and end on the baseline, unlike print letters, which begin and end in different places.
Cursive letters are also less likely to be reversed, i.e. b and d.
These thoughts are supported by the current research on handwriting. Here's one study that shows teaching cursive helps improve children's writing and reading abilities in terms of written letter rate (students write faster), orthography (words are written correctly), and reading (students read and understand better).
And you can find many more studies like that in Google Scholar.
How Montessori Schools Teach Cursive
Cursive is first introduced with the Sandpaper Letters.
The child explores the textured cursive letters with their fingers, saying the sound of the letter as they trace.
This combines tactile, visual and auditory learning to form strong associations. Children are introduced to just a few letters at a time, allowing for repetition and mastery before moving on.
After working with the Sandpaper Letters, children may begin using sand trays and chalkboards to continue practicing letter formation.
These materials continue to offer tactile feedback and give children a way to practice writing in a fun, low-pressure way.
Once the child has had ample practice with tracing the letters and can recognize letter sounds, they move on to the Movable Alphabet in cursive.
The movable alphabet allows children to start word building without having to write the letters by hand just yet.
4. Writing with a Pencil
When a child is ready to write with a pencil, they’re invited to do so with chalkboards or lined paper.
By this stage, their hands are well prepared and writing should feel like a natural next step.
