Once considered a dying craft, cursive writing may soon see a revival in public schools across Florida thanks to a bill that would mandate extended instruction for elementary school students.
On March 20, the House unanimously passed the measure (HB 921), filed Feb. 23 by Rep. Tobin Overdorf, R-Palm City. The legislature aims to expand cursive requirements in public schools in Grades 2-5.
"Cursive writing isn't just a skill, it's a link to our heritage and a tool for lifelong learning. This bill adds cursive writing to the statutorily required instruction for students. Under the bill, students must be taught to form cursive letters, proper spacing and alignment, and must practice writing complete words and sentences in cursive," Overdorf said on the House floor in March.
The Senate companion (SB 1394), introduced by Sen. Erin Grall, R-Vero Beach, is going through committees.
Under the proposal, students would have to pass an evaluation on proficiency in writing, reading and applying cursive by the end of fifth grade. If signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis, it would take effect July 1 and begin at the start of the 2025-26 academic year.
Brendan Murphy and his wife, Suada Kadiric, run Lighthouse Paper Co., a retail stationery and gift shop in Melbourne. At their shop, they have organized free cursive workshops, attracting interest from students of all genders – and occasionally even parents. They stress the importance of introducing cursive at an early age as young brains are the most receptive to learning.
"Kids – in that second-to-fifth-grade level – their brains are developing and they soak everything up like a sponge. It doesn't take nearly as long for kids that age to grasp concepts," said Murphy. "Cursive writing engages different parts of the brain compared to typing or even printing. It allows students to concentrate on words because it's a continuous flow of movement."
Florida is among 23 states that requires students to have some sort of cursive instruction. Students in Grade 3-5 learn cursive as part of their English language arts curriculum, but evaluations of proficiency are not required.
Private schools in the state require proficiency in cursive; the bill would also ensure that all public school students receive the same instruction.
Jacqueline Danzer, a real estate broker in Lighthouse Point, is among the parents in favor of elementary school students learning and being tested on cursive, as she believes it plays a vital role in their personal development.
"For you to be able to write, you need to be able to read – and reading is something people lack. For you to imitate cursive, you have to read cursive and you need to see how it's being done," said Danzer. "Cursive is important for the development of the brain, and the creation of self-esteem, confidence and personality."
Many local parents also became concerned when their public school children stopped learning cursive past elementary school – and some even took it upon themselves to see the curriculum through.
Dee Cunnigham, a resident of Boca Raton, explained that when her son went to Ramblewood Elementary School in Coral Springs from kindergarten to fifth grade, cursive was traditionally taught in third grade. However, after half the year went by, she noticed her son had not been learning it any more.
"I went to the teacher and asked when they would start. It was only then did I learn it was dropped from the curriculum. I was shocked when my son was not learning cursive in school. I ended up teaching him at home myself – I came up with creative ways to make it fun. He is now 23 and glad he learned," Cunningham said in a Nextdoor message.
Danzer had a similar experience with her now-27-year-old son Konrad when he attended private and public schools throughout Orange and Miami-Dade counties.
While in school, he never learned cursive so she, a single parent, taught him at home. She said that her son was never given the option of whether or not to learn. She said it was an important skill for him to have.
"When you develop your style in cursive, you're telling the world what kind of [person] you are. You're like an artist, an architect or a scientist – you are everybody you want to be the way you write and the way you express yourself," said Danzer, adding that cursive can also help children with things like playing musical instruments or sports as their hands are already conditioned.
There are some Floridians, though, like Connie Costello, a resident of Boca Raton, that do not think cursive is as useful as it was and that it is just important that students know how to write without having to master cursive.
"I used to think cursive was a good thing to teach … but now I think if kids can just write, it's a win. I really don't care how they learn to write as long as they write. I would focus on more important subjects," Costello said in an email.
Diane Bruton, a real estate assistant in Boca Raton, was formerly a third- grade teacher in New Jersey and a fifth-grade teacher in Fort Lauderdale. While teaching third grade, she taught cursive, which she said students always enjoyed.
"They absolutely loved it;, there were no problems whatsoever. For them, it was a new thing and they knew that when they were in third grade, they were going to learn something and … use it for the rest of their lives," said Bruton.
While she is in favor of the bill extending cursive instruction in school, she explained that she would love to see it go beyond elementary school.
"It's good for hand coordination and seeing old documents and how to read them. It's a part of history and who we are. I think it's something they should learn and keep up with – I don't think it should stop in fifth grade," said Bruton. "It's really a lost art form … for schools to stop teaching it – I don't understand that. I don't understand how you could learn it and not use it again."
This story was produced by MediaLab@FAU, a project of Florida Atlantic University School of Communication and Multimedia Studies, as part of a content sharing partnership with the WLRN newsroom. The reporter can be reached here.
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