Peterson Directed Handwriting is a computer based method for teaching print and cursive handwriting. If you have a Wacom pen tablet you can practice right on the computer screen and print or save your pages for record keeping.
What’s the cost of the PDF By Hand Program:
I tried this with my 1st grader and he did better once I scrapped the Wacom tablet and printed the pages instead. It was difficult for him to maneuver the pen on the screen, though I think it’s good hand/eye coordination practice. I actually found that my own handwriting was messy on the pen tablet as well! So I think that would take some practice for sure, maybe it would be better suited towards older students.
Here you can see the top section was done on the pen tablet, then I printed it and had him complete the bottom section using a marker. Clearly he can write a straight line but doing so on the tablet was difficult.
The program teaches helpful words used to create the letter shapes. For example for a cursive capital A they say “Curve Down, Sharp Top, Finish or Join”. The letters are also color coded so they do the green line first, black second then red last. One thing I noticed with this handwriting was the size of the letters. At the start of the lessons they are quite large (almost double the size they should be for my 2nd grader), however I think they are a good size for a kindergartner. But as you progress through the lessons the letters get smaller and smaller until they are like regular adult handwriting.
Manuscript: The manuscript does vertical printing then moves to slanted print at which point you’d move to the cursive program.
Cursive: The cursive program includes practice for letters, numbers, days of the week, months of the year. They also teach joining letters, and tails. And goes through grade 8.
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Disclosure: Disclosure: I am member of the TOS Homeschool Crew. Peterson Directed Handwriting provided me with a free copy of the manuscript and cursive programs to review on my blog. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by the company or the free product provided.