Grade 2 | CURSIVE
WEEK 8 • TEACHER GUIDE • DAYS 1–5
Use this guide with the Week 8 Copybook. Each lesson takes about 10 to 15 minutes. Model each letter or stroke first, say the cue while the child writes, and keep the practice short and careful. Day 5 is an independent check.
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This week
Week: Cursive Week 8 of 10 (C8): Capital Letters A, C, E, O, N, M, H, K. Suggested alongside Academic Week 24.
Standards (Alabama Course of Study, English Language Arts 2021):
- 2.LF.37.c: Form uppercase and lowercase letters in cursive.
Materials: A sharpened pencil, the printed Week 8 sheets (print at 100%, actual size, on letter paper), and a table and chair that let the child sit with feet flat.
Models: Cursive letter models are drawn from Playwrite US Trad, a school handwriting font by TypeTogether released under the SIL Open Font License. Start dots and arrows were placed by hand on each letter and checked against the letter’s path.
Day 1: Capitals A and C
Goal: The child forms A and C correctly and writes them at the start of the names Ada, Cole, joining the small letters that follow.
Cue for A: “Back and around, close, up tall, slant down, curve up.”
Watch for: Starting at the bottom; a stem that stops below the top line.
Cue for C: “Up, back and around, curve up.”
Watch for: Starting on the left side; a C that sits above the baseline.
Left-handed note: Left-handed writer: slant the paper the other way (top turned to the right), hold the pencil a little higher, and keep the wrist below the writing line so the hand does not cover or smudge the letters. Pull strokes toward the elbow.
Teaching note: Capitals reach the top line. Some capitals join to the next letter and some do not; follow the model in each name.
Routine checklist. Check each step as the child finishes it.
- ☐ Warm up: the child writes the letter large in the air with a straight arm while saying the cue.
- ☐ The child traces the model with a finger, starting on the green dot and following the arrows.
- ☐ The child traces the gray letters on the sheet, then writes on the empty rows.
- ☐ The child joins the letters in the practice words.
- ☐ The child circles his or her best letter, and the adult names one thing to fix next time.
Day 2: Capitals E and O
Goal: The child forms E and O correctly and writes them at the start of the names Eli, Omar, joining the small letters that follow.
Cue for E: “Back and around to the middle, out and back, around, curve up.”
Watch for: Leaving out the short middle line; a top part that is bigger than the bottom part.
Cue for O: “Down the left, around, up the right, over, small loop, out.”
Watch for: Going around clockwise; leaving out the small loop at the top.
Left-handed note: Left-handed writer: slant the paper the other way (top turned to the right), hold the pencil a little higher, and keep the wrist below the writing line so the hand does not cover or smudge the letters. Pull strokes toward the elbow.
Routine checklist. Check each step as the child finishes it.
- ☐ Warm up: the child writes the letter large in the air with a straight arm while saying the cue.
- ☐ The child traces the model with a finger, starting on the green dot and following the arrows.
- ☐ The child traces the gray letters on the sheet, then writes on the empty rows.
- ☐ The child joins the letters in the practice words.
- ☐ The child circles his or her best letter, and the adult names one thing to fix next time.
Day 3: Capitals N and M
Goal: The child forms N and M correctly and writes them at the start of the names Nora, Mike, joining the small letters that follow.
Cue for N: “Overcurve tall, slant down; trace up, overcurve, slant down, curve up.”
Watch for: Lifting before the second part; a first part that is shorter than the second.
Cue for M: “Overcurve, slant; overcurve, slant; overcurve, slant, curve up.”
Watch for: Lifting between parts; parts that grow or shrink across the letter.
Left-handed note: Left-handed writer: slant the paper the other way (top turned to the right), hold the pencil a little higher, and keep the wrist below the writing line so the hand does not cover or smudge the letters. Pull strokes toward the elbow.
Routine checklist. Check each step as the child finishes it.
- ☐ Warm up: the child writes the letter large in the air with a straight arm while saying the cue.
- ☐ The child traces the model with a finger, starting on the green dot and following the arrows.
- ☐ The child traces the gray letters on the sheet, then writes on the empty rows.
- ☐ The child joins the letters in the practice words.
- ☐ The child circles his or her best letter, and the adult names one thing to fix next time.
Day 4: Capitals H and K
Goal: The child forms H and K correctly and writes them at the start of the names Hana, Kofi, joining the small letters that follow.
Cue for H: “Wave, slant down. Lift, slant down. Lift, loop across, out.”
Watch for: Joining the two slants at the top; a loop that does not cross the right slant.
Cue for K: “Wave, slant down. Lift, curve in to the middle, small loop, kick down, curve up.”
Watch for: A second stroke that does not touch the first slant; leaving out the small loop.
Left-handed note: Left-handed writer: slant the paper the other way (top turned to the right), hold the pencil a little higher, and keep the wrist below the writing line so the hand does not cover or smudge the letters. Pull strokes toward the elbow.
Teaching note: H has three strokes and two pen lifts. K has two strokes and one lift.
Routine checklist. Check each step as the child finishes it.
- ☐ Warm up: the child writes the letter large in the air with a straight arm while saying the cue.
- ☐ The child traces the model with a finger, starting on the green dot and following the arrows.
- ☐ The child traces the gray letters on the sheet, then writes on the empty rows.
- ☐ The child joins the letters in the practice words.
- ☐ The child circles his or her best letter, and the adult names one thing to fix next time.
Day 5: Handwriting Check
Check: The child writes the letters A, C, E, O, N, M, H, K and the words Alabama, Mobile, Huntsville in cursive without models. The child may look at the printed letters and words; do not show the cursive models.
Rubric: Score each area 1 (not yet), 2 (sometimes) or 3 (consistent).
| Area | What to look for | Score (1, 2 or 3) |
|---|---|---|
| Letter formation | Starts on the dot’s spot and follows the strokes in order. | |
| Size | Short letters reach the midline; tall letters reach the top line; tails go below the baseline. | |
| Slant | Letters lean the same way, a little to the right. | |
| Spacing | Even space between letters; a clear space between words. | |
| Joins | Each letter flows into the next without a lift, except where a dot or cross needs one. | |
| Legibility | Another reader can read every letter and word. |
Next step: If any area scores 1, repeat this week’s hardest lesson before moving on. Scores of 2 can be practiced alongside next week’s lessons.
Sources
- Alabama State Department of Education, ALEX, English Language Arts 2021, Grade 2, standard 37 and parts a to c: https://alex.alsde.edu/node/8723, https://alex.alsde.edu/node/8724 and https://alex.alsde.edu/stds/COS/8725/printer_friendly
- Alabama State Department of Education, Alabama Reading Initiative, Handwriting Guide K-3 (posture, grip, paper position and the scoring rubric adapted for Day 5): https://www.alabamaachieves.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/ARI_20221019_Handwriting-Guide-K-3_V1.0.pdf
- TypeTogether, Playwrite US Trad (SIL Open Font License 1.1), via Google Fonts: https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Playwrite+US+Trad
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