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LAS14

(15,515 posts) Tue Nov 29, 2022, 12:15 PM Nov 2022

Lament #1 about what's happening to the latest generation. [View all]

Last edited Tue Nov 29, 2022, 04:35 PM - Edit history (3)

Let's wait until there are no living people who were taught cursive before we disdain to spend a day or two introducing our children to the skill of reading cursive.

It's one thing to stop teaching kids how to write cursive, but to not spend even an hour on how to read it is tantamount to telling them that the people who came before them don't matter. They don't need to be able to read saved correspondence, never mind notes that grandparents might send them at birthdays. The underlying message is really bad for a society.

EDIT: A lot of people responded as if I were lamenting the loss of cursive overall. I'm not. As I tried to explain in the post, letting go of teaching kids to write is one thing, but not teaching them how to read is a way of saying, "Don't pay attention to the people who came before you. What they wrote is not important. And that, in turn, tells the kids what society's values are."

Do you agree? Disagree?

48 replies

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Highlight:

Lament #1 about what's happening to the latest generation. [View all] LAS14 Nov 2022 OP

you have a point there,but .. DBoon Nov 2022 #1

Were their parents and grandparents sending them messages in Latin? nt LAS14 Nov 2022 #2

Latin was used for scholarly learning until fairly recent DBoon Nov 2022 #9

I Would Pay Money RobinA Nov 2022 #14

I can't imagine why; Cicero hasn't written anything new in years... brooklynite Nov 2022 #15

It's a made-up issue that's way too close to "we're losing the western world!!!!!!" for my liking. WhiskeyGrinder Nov 2022 #3

As an educator, I disagree Bucky Nov 2022 #30

Cursive is not the only thing that teaches those fine motor skills. Many, many art skills do the WhiskeyGrinder Nov 2022 #35

True, but painting doesn't have that critical de-coding component Bucky Nov 2022 #38

I rebelled about cursive not being taught in schools. Prairie_Seagull Nov 2022 #41

I'd forgotten about the Palmer Method Bucky Nov 2022 #43

Seen on Facebook: Cursive: A secret language for old folks. CrispyQ Nov 2022 #4

Grandparents/parents didn't/don't communicate via analog clocks. nt LAS14 Nov 2022 #23

Well, yeah. Analog clocks aren't for communicating they're for telling time. CrispyQ Nov 2022 #24

That's fascinating Bucky Nov 2022 #31

Should kids still be required to FSogol Nov 2022 #5

None of those address the message being sent to the older generation who have.. LAS14 Nov 2022 #22

Well, thanks to the discovery of the Rosetta stone, we are able to understand Demotic, Egyptian FSogol Nov 2022 #26

A common problem with DU posts. LAS14 Nov 2022 #44

How? I see what you are typing. n/t FSogol Nov 2022 #46

Well, learning to write in cursive also teaches how to read in it. MineralMan Nov 2022 #6

I am getting ready to write cursive, carefully, for a handful of Holiday cards question everything Nov 2022 #7

What happened to my cursive writing is something unique. MineralMan Nov 2022 #8

Interesting. And the Cyrillic Alphabet looks very different in printed vs cursive letters?... electric_blue68 Nov 2022 #27

Fascinating story question everything Nov 2022 #47

Yes, I can still read Russian. MineralMan Nov 2022 #48

Kids who write thank-you notes--not emails cyclonefence Nov 2022 #10

The day after Christmas & my birthday, CrispyQ Nov 2022 #25

Well, you were brought up right cyclonefence Nov 2022 #45

at best, I'd make it a high school elective DBoon Nov 2022 #11

One could consider it to be art. Kaleva Nov 2022 #18

It would take hours, not months, to learn to read cursive. nt LAS14 Nov 2022 #21

Then anyone who wants to learn to read it can do so on their own. Mariana Nov 2022 #33

I was trying to make a point about the message our society is sending to kids about... LAS14 Nov 2022 #34

This I Can't Get RobinA Nov 2022 #12

Isn't it a shame that we don't teach kids to read cuneiform? brooklynite Nov 2022 #13

I'm around your age and dearly value the letters that my mother wrote me throughout her life. All in BlackSkimmer Nov 2022 #17

Question: how do YOU write to younger generations today? brooklynite Nov 2022 #19

What would you do if you couldn't read those letters? Mariana Nov 2022 #36

I never use cursive except to sign my name, and even that is usually a kind of hybrid. ismnotwasm Nov 2022 #16

I asked my early-mid 20s kids if they were able to read cursive. Sky Jewels Nov 2022 #20

Reading cursive and writing cursive are two separate skills JustABozoOnThisBus Nov 2022 #28

Whether I like it or not, I think cursive will be gone w/in anther 25 years. Torchlight Nov 2022 #29

It will never be gone completely. Mariana Nov 2022 #37

True. My wife learned Powhatan script Torchlight Nov 2022 #40

I'm biased because I like cursive.... IcyPeas Nov 2022 #32

My handwriting is a combination of cursive and printing Mossfern Nov 2022 #39

To put it another way. LAS14 Nov 2022 #42