Cursive

Andy was doing his homework today and all was going fine until he got to his last and most difficult subject.  Cursive.  You heard me right, cursive.  He feels about cursive the way many kids feel about math.  It's hard, it's unimportant, it's useless, it's stupid, it's not necessary, it's a waste of time.  Did I mention hard?

We've finally figured out that when Andy balks at doing something it's because he's not good at it and he thinks it's hard.  There aren't that many things that he isn't good at, and that really, really bothers him.  Cursive is one of them.  Invariably when he does his weekly cursive homework, before he is finished with the assignment he has cried, yelled, kicked, screamed and cried some more.  He hates it and thinks it's so hard and just doesn't understand why they have to learn it.

The sad part is, I don't have a good answer for him.  I get why he has to learn it, but nobody really uses it anymore.  I never write in cursive because I can actually print faster and I hate the way my handwriting looks in cursive.  Most people type or text or email, but few hand write anything anymore.  Nonetheless, he has to learn it.

I keep telling him his option is to either do the assignment or not.  He can face the punishment at school if he decides it's just too much for him to finish it.  It's his choice.  Of course this usually calms him down and he finishes it grudgingly but without complaining, just as he mom would do.  In this way I see so much of myself in him.  Complain about something ad nauseam but still do it because that's what you have to do.  He would never not do an assignment just because he didn't like it, as I wouldn't have done either.  His father may be another story.

I actually got out my camera phone and started videoing him crying on the floor, but he got really mad at me and when he asked me to delete it I complied.  Bummer, it was good.  It shows I still need to work on my tolerance for my children's irrational behavior.  I did feel bad for him, but if cursive is his biggest problem in life he doesn't really have anything to worry about right now.

Hopefully this will remain his biggest academic issue for the next few years.  I like the fact that he doesn't need a lot of help, because the next one is going to give us a run for our money.  Of course I have no doubts that she is going to be excellent at cursive.