I was one of those Catholic school kids who was left handed. The nuns set to trying to make me write with my right hand, which failed since I immediately went back to my left hand when they were out of sight. But I did learn skills that came in handy - being ambidextrous, for example. I also learned to write under my jacket so they couldn't see which hand I was using.
In my parochial elementary school, we were taught penmanship as a separate subject which you could fail. I was reminded of that quite often because not only was I left handed but my handwriting (perhaps as a result of having to switch hands) was illegible. In fact, in a desperate move to pass penmanship in fourth grade, I began to write so small that no one could read it. I recall teachers holding my marble composition book upside down and sideways and taking a magnifying glass to it prior to writing a big red F on top.
So that's the story of how I graduated from Catholic elementary school with handwriting that looked like hieroglyphics. Flunking penmanship did not hold me back in life as I feared. Of course now I can't write at all because my hands are paralyzed. It's a bit of a relief actually.
If you went to Catholic school, you probably learned to write with the method seen in the video below. Ahhh, memories.
4 comments:
I'm a lefty and learned the Palmer method in public school. It was always my fear, and a realistic one, that my handwriting was going to keep me from the honor role. In high school I just joked that I was practicing for writing prescriptions since my goal at the time was med school.
Handwriting is difficult for lefties because your hand blocks you from seeing what you write. I far prefer typing.
Frida- I started typing young too. Much preferred it also.
The F, T, and W are different than I was taught. Still, a thing of beauty. I had forgotten the E and Q. The only C I got in the first 8 grades was in fourth grade, handwriting.
Julana- I remember developing my own variations on the F, T and W, not to mention each and every letter. Hmm, no wonder I flunked!
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