[RosieCotton]

I was surprised to hear recently that handwriting (i.e. anything other than basic printing) isn't always taught in schools anymore. I realize it's not as much of an issue, and I have mixed feelings about it becoming lost. Personally, I still do quite a bit of letter writing - there's something much more personal and meaningful about handwritten correspondence.

[cripplecreek]

One look at my mothers handwriting and you'll wonder if they taught it in the 40s and 50s.

[goldstategop]

No one writes beautifully anymore. The personal touch is becoming a lost art.

(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)

[RosieCotton]

Maybe an interesting topic for homeschooling discussion?

[Glenn]

isn't always taught in schools anymore

My handwriting is illegible. Always has been. It's a good thing you could not be held back for it.

[Piquaboy]

I have been pretty good at tails and legs since reaching puberty.

[blackeagle]

Penmanship Bump!

[MikefromOhio]

I never did write much...

[najida]

I read medical records all day...

OK, decipher the encryptions that is ;)

[greydog]

Cursive is for sissys anyway.

[Malacoda]

That's a shame...a well-written, beautifully lettered document is a wonderful thing.

Of course, I had good penmanship BEATEN into me by the Sisters of the Holy Chalkboard Pointer at Our Lady of Pain, so...

[LIConFem]

I used to have very good penmanship, but after using a 'puter keyboard for 22+ years, I'm barely able to sign my name legibly.

[Walkingfeather]

The idea of cursive was to be able to write faster. But some studies have indicated that one can print just as fast and can be read easier, so I think the idea is losing its meaning.

[zook]

Anyone here old enough to remember "Zaner-Blowser" pens? The specially designed pens that went along with their series of elementary school penmanship books? I always got the lowest grades in penmanship and my handwriting stinks to this day.

[yarddog]

I once dated a little girl who had absolutely beautiful writing. Her letters were works of art and I think she intended for them to be.

Now that I think about it, she was a work of art too.

[joylyn]

When I was in grade school -- 1950s -- we were supposed to write with a half dollar balanced on the back of our wrist. I never did learn to do this, although I could write well enough. Legible penmanship is still useful at times. But I think the real issue is that handwriting teaches fine motor skills, and I tend to believe that physical coordination and logical thinking are related.

[Fairview]

I spend hours every day at the keyboard and it's hard to motivate myself to pick up a pen and hand-write letters at night. But people love getting hand-written thank-you notes, Christmas card notes, congratulations, etc. Elderly people cherish hand-written letters. They seem to mean something to older people that even a longer computer-generated letter doesn't. Maybe it's because handwriting shows personality so much more than the printed word. So I do try to hand-write some things and make them as handsome as possible.

Funny, my 12-year-old son who loves Playstation and computer games would rather hand-write homework and stories than type them.

[Teacher317]

Personally, I think that my handwriting looks great!

[Not A Snowbird]

My daughter and her peers have atrocious handwriting, grammar, and spelling. They aren't stressed in school.

I remember getting dinged for my spelling in classes other than English. Now the other teachers don't care how terrible the grammar and spelling is; that's the English teacher's problem.

[MaggieCarta]

...computers are speeding the demise of a uniquely American form of expression.

Thanks, CBS! I didn't realize that Americans were the only people who use handwriting as a means of expression.

Don't be so surprised, RC. There is so much to do during the school day, what with counting on condoms and so forth, one scarcely has time for cursive writing.

[Living Free in NH]

I broke my thumb playing volleyball about 10 years ago. Some days my handwriting is pretty good, but there's days when my thumb doesn't want to cooperate and my writing looks more like scribbling.