“Seeing my father’s handwriting puts me in contact with the man he was at each stage
of his life.” John Carter Cash
By the mid ‘60’s, I was teaching my fourth class of second graders but this was my first year with Cincinnati Public Schools. My assignment was second grade at Oyler Elementary School in Lower Price Hill. The population was from Appalachia in Kentucky. The children were charming.
When I arrived at the beginning of the school year, I was pleased to find that my predecessor had left the classroom well-stocked with all kinds of supplies, some that I had never used.
That was the case with a small box of large gold-foil stars found in a desk drawer.
Those stars were 1.5” wide. I’d never used stars in my earlier three years with second graders but gave it a try with gold stars on perfect spelling papers in the early weeks of school.
The students weren’t used to stars either and the stars didn’t seem to make much difference…so the little box was shoved to the back of the desk drawer.
As the new calendar year arrived and Christmas break ended, my second graders returned so eager to learn “grown-up writing,” cursive handwriting.
December had seen the classroom take on cursive writing forms: cursive alphabet cards over the manuscript cards displayed over the chalkboard, student names in cursive added to the manuscript names on their desks, cursive words added to calendars and posters, etc. They were learning to read cursive before learning to write in cursive.
Back from Christmas break, everyone was excited at the prospect but calm returned when I promised that cursive lessons would start after lunch.
One student excelled in manuscript handwriting. He was very tall for second grade. His clothes couldn’t keep up with the growth of his arms and legs. With blond curly hair, bright eyes and a huge easy smile, he was loved by all of us. An average student, he was a pleasure to have in class.
As I made my way around to each desk during the cursive lessons, everyone would turn
when I arrived at his desk. I would be exclaiming about the perfection of his cursive
handwriting: perfect size, shape, space, slant.
Perfection…he knew it, I knew it, we all knew it and were delighted for him. A+ and 100% always.
One day with the lesson ended, we were transitioning to the next activity. I returned to my desk when he appeared at my elbow with his handwriting paper.
“You got any more of them stars?” he inquired.
It had been months since the gold stars had appeared and disappeared.
At first, I didn’t realize what he was asking but quickly went digging into the desk drawer
for the little white box.
The big gold star was affixed to his cursive handwriting paper.
His face glowed! Such radiant joy in his accomplishment! His Gold Star! I was so very glad that he asked!
An unforgettable moment for this teacher.
By third grade, students would create individualized versions of their own cursive
handwriting, signatures reflecting their personalities and preferences.
Judy Harris is well established in Northern Kentucky life, as a longtime elementary and university educator. A graduate of Thomas More, she began her career there in 1980 where she played a key role in teacher education and introduced students to national and international travel experiences. She has traveled and studied extensively abroad. She enjoys retirement yet stays in daily contact with university students.