To ask you to help me with a little experiment?

[Namechangearoon]

Please could you write them quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog' in your normal handwriting, take a picture and post it here with your age?

Learning to write 'joined up' at school in 1964, we were just told to not take our pencils off the page until the end of hte word; then dot is and cross ts, then start the next word.

Sometimes my writing's joined up, sometime some of a word/s are printed; sometimes my writing's more cursive than other times. It changes throughout the day and from day to day.

I also prefer to write with the paper sideways on to me - the opposite way to those who are right handed have it (so R side nearest to me).

I do think the way we were taught to write joined up at school is much the best way. No learning cursive letters (I hated it when dd was supposed to do cursive - I really couldn't bring myself to support the teachers in that).

I don’t have any lined paper...

I’m 42.

We were all taught to do a very specific handwriting, spent time every day practicing it - mine didn’t ever quite conform tbh, lol, but at secondary school, teachers could and did walk round and tell who went to my primary school by their handwriting.

children need to be able to write in cursive to "pass" their sats.

Sats are a measure of how well the school are doing.

as long as he is legible and reasonably quick he will be fine in the long run.

Is he particularly bendy and finding writing painful?

@giantangryrooster

Hmm, me and ds.

Are you going to tell our fortunes now?

Your ds hand writing is lovely!

Because I can't resist an experiment.

Someone asked above if you can change handwriting - yes, you can! It is slow at the start but soon enough you will be writing completely differently (and in my case, forgetting how to write quickly in your original one!).

I have also added a diary picture from when I was 11. You probably can't understand the words that aren't dog breeds, but don't worry: those were just my plans to breed them.

So, in case you don't understand my writing:
First style is the original one. Used it from learning to write to the time I was 15, when teachers began to mark my English tests wrong because they thought I was spelling Her (and other words starting with H) with R. I can no longer write this way unless I do it very slowly.

Middle one was developed after reading the Harry Potter books. I wished to mimic Dumbledore's slanted handwriting. I can write in this style very quickly, but I prefer the last style.

Last style is the one I use daily. I wasn't taught how to use these types of letters so painstakingly taught myself.

I actually have two handwriting styles, I posted my cursive up thread as I prefer it, but mainly when I am writing things quickly, or for other people to read, I use my print.

I’m a university lecturer and my students are always from a very wide range of ages. I seldom see cursive among younger students, it tends to be more common with those over 40. When I first opened this thread I wondered if it was about cursive and I was surprised that so many examples had such neat, cursive influenced handwriting. Because this is a self-selecting sample, I suspect those who have contributed have better handwriting that many of the population. I’m left-handed and I have never been able to write neatly and my handwriting has got worse as I’ve got older and rely more on computers (as you can see - no cursive here!).
I’m 45.

My writing is a mix of cursive and not... I join some letters but not others. I don't loop my g's and y's etc to make them join to the next letter for eg.

52

@Nosnogginginthekitchen

37

I thought it was 'jumped?

It’s ‘jumps’ otherwise there would be no s anywhere in the sentence and it should contain all letters of the alphabet.

Not very neat.

I'm in my 40s

I'm 30.

My writing is so lazy, poor k I never do the joined up lower case k as it looks like a R, although I do it in my signature randomly!

I'm jealous of the fancy z, I must of been day dreaming that day at school.

I also hate the learning cursive flicks when writing in reception. My DS' nursery taught him without, so he can write already, but it will be wrong ! He's just started year R.

I used my easiest to do handwriting. I'm 30

I'm 52.

Here’s mine

Sorry about the typing on the other side!

Aged 41

I'm 34 and don't do cursive unless I'm quickly scribbling notes for myself or when I'm drunk!! I don't know when/why I stopped doing it. Though I do have a hand tremor so I have to put a lot of effort into writing...

Unless I'm writing a 'proper' letter to my aged Aunt, when I do joined up writing, I write lists etc in capitals, so I can read them without my glasses in the shops.

Here's mine!

Late 30s

Here’s mine. I’m 30.

Cursive is faster and thus better for exams, provided it is legible.