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Do they also do a Palmer reading method? I looked at this complete example - https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Palmer_Method_sample.jpg https

Do they also do a Palmer reading method? I looked at this complete example - https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Palmer_Method_sample.jpg https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Palmer_M... - and, whilst very beautiful, I found it in no way easy to read. Perhaps the rigorous consistency (derived from the drilling) means you get used to it after a few pages, I don't know.

yodon 11y ago
The big benefit isn't learning a specific writing style, it's building the eye-hand motor control skills needed to form letters the way your eye intends. Take a glance at the 2nd practice exercise on the OP (two continuous rows of interlocked O's with a vertical zig-zag between them) - very few people have the eye-hand coordination to make those shapes nicely without practice (let alone make them quickly). If you do nothing but practice that one exercise, you'll get 90% of the benefit of the Palmer method and your handwriting will improve noticeably, regardless of what style of handwriting you prefer [0] [0] yes, this is a semi-anecdotal study, but I go through the drill every five or ten years and each time my handwriting radically improves, and I've watched multiple co-workers go through the same experience (each time after admitting they envy'd my handwriting because they were too embarrassed to write on whiteboards because of their own illegible scrawls)
zzzmarcus 11y ago
Interesting. Did you learn cursive in elementary school? I find the sample really easy and pleasant to read. I wonder if it's a difference in experience or just personal preference.
- rcurry 11y ago
  I felt the same about that sample text - I'm used to writing in cursive, and that sample was actually pretty easy on the eyes for me. I think we're well on our way to a day when nobody writes by hand at all. It's a shame, but at the same time kind of cool that I can just speak a keyword and have my phone transcribe an email for me.

yodon 11y ago

The big benefit isn't learning a specific writing style, it's building the eye-hand motor control skills needed to form letters the way your eye intends. Take a glance at the 2nd practice exercise on the OP (two continuous rows of interlocked O's with a vertical zig-zag between them) - very few people have the eye-hand coordination to make those shapes nicely without practice (let alone make them quickly). If you do nothing but practice that one exercise, you'll get 90% of the benefit of the Palmer method and your handwriting will improve noticeably, regardless of what style of handwriting you prefer [0] [0] yes, this is a semi-anecdotal study, but I go through the drill every five or ten years and each time my handwriting radically improves, and I've watched multiple co-workers go through the same experience (each time after admitting they envy'd my handwriting because they were too embarrassed to write on whiteboards because of their own illegible scrawls)

zzzmarcus 11y ago

Interesting. Did you learn cursive in elementary school? I find the sample really easy and pleasant to read. I wonder if it's a difference in experience or just personal preference.

rcurry 11y ago
I felt the same about that sample text - I'm used to writing in cursive, and that sample was actually pretty easy on the eyes for me. I think we're well on our way to a day when nobody writes by hand at all. It's a shame, but at the same time kind of cool that I can just speak a keyword and have my phone transcribe an email for me.