How to write a cursive t

Forming the cursive t

t is i's tall twin: the same rise-and-retrace movement, taken to the top line, with no loop. Whether the crossbar goes on straight away or at the end of the word, pick one habit and keep it, inconsistency is what produces uncrossed t's. Lead-in is an undercurve, exit leaves from the baseline.

Start: On the baseline, at the left

1. Undercurve lead-in climbing from the baseline to the tall-t height (about three-quarters of the way to the top line)
2. Retrace straight back down the stem to the baseline, with NO loop at the top
3. Undercurve exit at the baseline, swinging away toward the next letter; the pencil comes off the paper at the end of this stroke
4. PEN LIFT, then add the crossing stroke: a short horizontal line across the stem at or a little above the midline

How it joins

The cursive t finishes on the baseline with an undercurve, which is exactly where the next letter begins. That is why cursive can be written without lifting the pencil: the exit of one letter is the entry of the next. Practise t inside a word rather than on its own as soon as the shape is reliable, because the join is the part that actually needs practice.

Common mistakes

• A loop appears at the top, which turns t into l.
• The crossing stroke is forgotten and t is left as a tall i.
• The crossbar is placed too high, up at the top line, or too low, down at the baseline.
• The crossbar is drawn so long that it runs into the letters on either side.

Letters that move the same way

Retraced stem letters: An undercurve lead-in straight up to the midline or the top line, then a return journey back down over exactly the same line. The whole family lives or dies on whether the child retraces on the line rather than beside it.

ijpu

Print first, then cursive

Cursive is usually introduced once print handwriting is automatic, typically around third grade. If a child is still thinking about how to form printed letters, adding a second script makes both harder. Theprinted t page covers that form, andwhen cursive is usually taughtexplains why the timing varies so much.