Handwriting 2026 Texas, Grade 3

Evaluation for 1.1a
Materials include an explanation of the stated purpose of the supplemental program (e.g., additional instruction and/or practice, targeted remediation or acceleration).

The grade 3 Teacher Edition “Efficacy” section identifies the supplemental program’s stated purpose. The section states, “The act of handwriting supports the brains of developing readers. As students practice forming letters, they learn to recognize the letters when they read.” The section also outlines the program's short- and long-term goals. In the short term, the program aims to help students write automatically, efficiently, and legibly. Long-term goals include helping students apply their handwriting skills to communicate their thoughts and ideas, and to build connections within learning communities.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition introduces the program’s purpose on the “Getting Started” page. Educators explain that the materials help students improve their ability to write letters, words, numerals, and sentences. The page also outlines strategies to help students produce more legible handwriting. In addition, the materials explain that explicit handwriting instruction, paired with ongoing practice, contributes to students’ development as readers, writers, and communicators.

Evaluation for 1.1b
Materials include guidance on how to appropriately use the supplemental program to support an existing core reading and language arts program.

Grade 3 materials provide clear guidance on how to appropriately integrate handwriting instruction into a core reading and language arts program. The Teacher Edition “Sequence of Instruction” section explicitly outlines the most effective approach for use of this supplemental program, and describes the three-step process of “Model,” “Practice,” and “Evaluate.”

The grade 3 Teacher Edition “Program Components” page provides instructional overviews that emphasize how educators can deliver explicit, effective handwriting instruction in 15 minutes each day. To support instructional efficiency, the Teacher Edition includes practical tips for quick modeling, guided practice, and evaluation. This flexible design allows educators to incorporate the curriculum throughout the school day, including during brief five- to 10-minute instructional periods.

Evaluation for 1.1c
Materials include a scope and sequence outlining student expectations, skills taught, and a rationale for the design of the scope and sequence.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes a “Correlation to TEKS” section. The TEKS correlation table outlines student expectations down to the breakout level, and identifies the specific Teacher Edition and Student Workbook pages where each breakout standard is addressed.

Grade 3 materials in the Teacher Edition include a scope and sequence document that provides educators with page numbers for the skills taught throughout the program. For example, if educators want to work on the skill of “joining,” the scope and sequence document includes both student-facing and educator-facing pages for that skill.

The Teacher Edition’s introduction to the materials includes a rationale for the scope and sequence design in the “Groupings, Patterns, and Progress” section. This section explains that letters of the alphabet are presented in groups that “share common strokes, formation patterns, and visual attributes.”

Evaluation for 1.1d
Materials include guidance on time requirements (e.g., duration, frequency) and suggested pacing for effective implementation.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition “Fast, Efficient Instruction” section guides the program’s time requirements and describes how educators can implement the program in 15 minutes per day. The Teacher Edition provides explicit instruction and practice opportunities for implementation throughout the day, and the lessons allow for flexible implementation within the daily plan. The Teacher Edition also divides lessons into a consistent three-part format: “Model,” “Practice,” and “Evaluate.”

The virtual My ZB Portal includes a pacing guide for grade 3 that is designed for 36 weeks of instruction and includes guidance for five days per week. The pacing guide outlines the educator and student pages used each day and describes the whole-class, educator-led instruction for daily lessons. The pacing guide also directs educators to additional resources, such as the associated Animated Letter Model, videos, and games for each lesson. In addition, the pacing guide provides related differentiation activities and indicates whether home practice is available.

Evaluation for 1.1e
Materials include resources and guidance to support educators with implementing the materials as designed.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition “Program Components” pages support effective program implementation by providing educators with visual examples of the materials, including the student and educator guides. These examples identify and explain the sections on each page and describe how educators and students should use the materials during instruction. Each section of the sample page is highlighted and labeled to clarify its purpose for educators. For example, the “Strategies for Improving Handwriting as a Whole Class” section directs educators to the “Teacher Tips” feature on the sample page. Additionally, the “Your Components at a Glance” page offers further implementation support because it lists each program component, provides a brief description of its purpose and benefits, and indicates where educators can find the resources.

Throughout the grade 3 Teacher Edition, educators find implementation guidance for the program. The materials introduce educators to the program’s key resources, including the Teacher Edition, Student Edition, and Practice Masters, and explain how to use each component. For example, the Teacher Edition includes research-based instruction, streamlined three-step lessons, and supplemental supports such as differentiation tips. Practice Masters provide additional opportunities for student practice through reproducible pages that educators can use for small-group instruction, learning centers, or homework assignments.

Evaluation for 1.1f
Materials contain supports for families in both Spanish and English with suggestions on supporting the progress of their student.

Grade 3 Practice Masters include family supports, such as printable pages for educators to send home so students can practice handwriting with their families. Some of these pages include “Notes to Families” that offer guidance and tips to help caregivers support student learning at home.

Additionally, the grade 3 Teacher Edition includes a “School–Home Connection” initiative to encourage family involvement and support students’ handwriting development at home. The materials highlight the importance of family support and provide access to practice materials and digital resources for use outside the classroom. For example, the materials state, “Adults can use the codes to help reinforce correct letter formation as students practice.” The program also includes a letter to families with tips for supporting handwriting at home. This letter is available in both English and Spanish.

Evaluation for 2.1a
Materials include appropriate instructional assessments for the stated purpose of the supplemental program (e.g., diagnostic placement assessments for targeted remediation or acceleration).

The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes an appropriate daily formative assessment that supports the supplemental program’s stated purpose. The last step in every lesson cycle is the “Evaluate” section, which instructs the educator to have students stop and evaluate their work. The lesson script provides the educator with questions to ask students about their work. For example, in unit 3, the educator asks, “Does your loop in z fill the descender space?” or “Is your z the same size as the model?” These questions help both the educator and students assess progress in handwriting skills. Students respond to the questions, and through the discussion, the educator can assess students’ progress. The educator can provide corrective feedback to the student during this formative assessment.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition also includes a summative assessment to help educators evaluate students’ progress at the end of the school year or after the instructional cycle. The posttest appears at the end of unit 4, in which students rewrite the same poem used in the pretest. To support students, educators meet with them to compare pretest and posttest results. The materials also provide guidance to help educators interpret results and determine whether students need more practice or have achieved mastery.

Evaluation for 2.1b
Materials include the definition and intended purpose for the instructional assessments included.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes the definition and intended purpose of one type of instructional assessment for the program. For instance, in the “Evaluation” section, self-evaluation is presented as a method for students to identify their strengths and weaknesses as they become independent learners. The self-evaluation process has five steps: “Question,” “Compare,” “Evaluate,” “Diagnose,” and “Improve.” With the use of these steps, the educator helps students learn to critique and improve their handwriting. To begin the self-evaluation process, students ask themselves questions such as, “Is my slant correct?” Next, students compare their work with a model and evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. Finally, students and educators diagnose the causes of difficulties and discuss possible corrections. These actions lead to improved writing.

Additional information in the grade 3 Teacher Edition, unit 2 “Evaluate” section, explains the purpose of instructional assessments for the program. This page states that the objective for the pretest assessment is to “evaluate cursive handwriting.” The section also has the educator explain that the purpose of this assessment is to compare the pretest with the posttest at the end of the school year. Educators are encouraged to meet with students individually to help them assess their handwriting skills and discuss goals for improvement.

Evaluation for 2.1c
For instructional assessments administered by educators, materials include guidance to ensure consistent and accurate administration of instructional assessments.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes explicit instructions for administration of the pretests and posttests, and provides directions for educators as they guide students through the three steps of the assessment: “Model,” “Practice,” and “Evaluate.” The script helps ensure consistent, accurate administration of the instructional assessment. For example, in step 1, “Model,” the educator tells students they will learn to write the letters of the alphabet in cursive, and directs students to read and discuss the poem’s author. Finally, the educator explains that “the pretest needs to be in their best handwriting,” and that the writing will be compared to the posttest to evaluate improvement. During the “Practice” step, the educator asks students to write the poem in cursive if they can do so carefully. In the last step, the educator observes students as they write, and notes whether they write in manuscript or cursive. Educators meet with students to discuss goals to improve handwriting.

In addition, the materials provide guidance in the grade 3 Teacher Edition “Evaluation” section to ensure consistent and accurate administration with use of the “Keys to Legibility.” Students and educators use these tools in each lesson and to assess their writing afterward. The materials explain how to compare posttest writing to pretest writing, and provides educators with a four-point rubric to evaluate students’ writing. The rubric assesses the “Keys to Legibility,” including shape, size, spacing, and slant.

Evaluation for 2.1d
Instructional assessments include items at varying levels of complexity.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition assessments in the program include items at varying levels of complexity, and the “Groupings, Patterns, and Progress” page outlines the systematic sequence embedded in the Handwriting program. The program groups both manuscript and cursive letters by stroke type and teaches them in a developmentally appropriate sequence, with rigor increasing as the program progresses. Students evaluate their writing during each lesson. The lessons progress from writing strokes to letters, then to words, sentences, and paragraphs.

Furthermore, the grade 3 program materials include assessments at the end of each unit that increase in complexity as students progress through the instructional cycle. For example, in unit 2, the “Evaluation” section has students write individual letters; in unit 3, students write phrases without capital letters; and in unit 4, students write complete sentences. All unit assessments provide students with a manuscript model of the required writing. In the posttest for the grade 3 program, students write their name, the letters they know, and their address. As students develop their skills, the materials become more complex with each passing unit.

Evaluation for 2.2a
Instructional assessments and scoring information provide guidance for interpreting student performance.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes “Cursive Keys to Legibility,” which provides educators with additional guidance for the evaluation and scoring of student performance. The materials provide educator tips for all four keys to legibility. For example, the Teacher Edition states, “Spacing describes the space between the letters, words, and sentences.” The tip also suggests that educators model this concept for students.

Also in grade 3, the Teacher Edition includes scoring information and guidance for the interpretation of student performance. For instance, the “Cursive Evaluation Rubric” in the Teacher Edition guides the educator’s evaluation of students’ handwriting for correct shape, size, spacing, and slant with the use of a four-point scale. The rubric has four rating categories: “Proficient,” “Satisfactory,” “Developing,” and “Emergent.” The rubric also provides further guidance and describes the criteria for each rating. For example, under the shape category, the rubric defines “Proficient” as “all of the letters are the Zaner-Bloser style.” The rubric lists “Satisfactory” as “most of the letters are in the Zaner-Bloser style.” Additional guidance is provided in the Teacher Edition “Evaluation” section, which tells educators to “use the criteria listed to determine the students’ level of handwriting proficiency on a particular assignment.” The guide provides feedback that students can easily understand, such as, “Try making your O rounder.”

Evaluation for 2.2b
Materials provide guidance for the use of the supplemental program to respond to student trends in performance on assessments.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition provides guidance on how to use the supplemental program to address student performance trends. For example, the “Evaluation” section makes educator recommendations for students who are determined to need improvement. The guidance states, “To improve letterforms, have the student practice writing the letter both in isolation and within words and sentences.” The section also directs the educator to provide additional basic instruction and practice, then to look for tips on the page with the initial teaching steps. In addition, the material guides the educator in how to give specific feedback to students on their handwriting, such as, “Try making your O rounder.”

The grade 3 Teacher Edition also provides guidance in the “Corrective Strategies for Cursive Letters” section, with suggestions for educators as they give corrective feedback to students. Educators can provide constructive feedback as they evaluate and discuss performance assessments with students. For example, if a student writes too small, the educator instructs the student to use ruled paper with a midline. The corrective strategies also include visual examples of potential student difficulties, and provide an example and a non-example for problem areas, along with possible educator feedback.

Evaluation for 2.2c
Materials include tools for educators to track student progress and growth, and tools for students to track their own progress and growth.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition provides educators with a “Record of Student’s Handwriting Skills,” which they use to track students’ progress as they work through the program. The tool lists all the essential skills taught in the program and allows the educator or student to check whether a skill needs improvement or demonstrates mastery. The directions for the “Record of Student’s Handwriting Skills” instruct the educator to make a copy for each student and to mark whether the student needs more work or has mastered the skill. Educators should review the list throughout the year and check for mastery when the student demonstrates it.

In addition to the “Record of Student’s Handwriting Skills” checklist, the grade 3 Teacher Edition provides students with a way to practice and track their progress and growth online. Students access the “Zaner-Bloser Handwriting” tool in the My ZB Portal where they can practice proper letter formation and review basic strokes. After they practice, students can capture a digital image of their work and revisit it later in their “Handwriting Portfolio.” The portfolio helps students track their progress as they evaluate their growth. Additionally, to earn achievements, students complete “free-write” activities, trace activities, and save snapshots to their portfolios.

Evaluation for 2.2d
If applicable for the stated purpose of the supplemental program, materials include guidance for entry and exit criteria.

This guidance is not applicable to the program because the program has a stated purpose of additional instruction and/or practice, not targeted remediation or acceleration.

Evaluation for 3.1a
If applicable for the stated purpose, materials include educator guidance for differentiated instruction and activities for students who have not yet reached proficiency in grade-level skills.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes educator guidance for differentiated instruction and activities for students who have not yet reached proficiency in grade-level skills. Throughout the program, educators have multiple opportunities to find activities and guidance to reinforce skills students have not yet mastered. As outlined in the grade 3 Teacher Edition, “Corrective Strategies for Cursive Letters” provides guidance on giving corrective feedback to students who struggle with specific strokes. Educators use corrective statements to guide conversations with students and provide specific guidance on correcting strokes. For example, when a student struggles with cursive a, the educator says, “Pull the diagonal stroke toward the baseline with a good retrace.” The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes a Manuscript Maintenance guide that helps educators differentiate instruction for students who are not ready for cursive handwriting. Educators use simple corrective statements to help struggling students address common handwriting issues. The guide presents a problem, such as “Letters slant to the left or right,” and then provides a corrective strategy, such as “Position paper as directed. Pull the vertical line in the direction indicated.”

Furthermore, the grade 3 Teacher Edition offers “Teacher Tips” that address students who struggle. Each tip provides guidance or an activity to target a skill students might be struggling with. One “Teacher Tip” found in unit 4 addresses students who struggle with joining letters and suggests having students make word lists and write tongue twisters. Another “Teacher Tip” in unit 3 addresses automaticity, where if a student struggles to gain automaticity, educators ask them to use sky-writing to demonstrate correct letter formation with their eyes closed. Finally, if a student struggles with paper position, the “Teacher Tip” in unit 3 suggests using masking tape to form a frame on the desk to help students know the correct paper position for writing. These tips help educators meet the needs of students who have not mastered the necessary skills.

Evaluation for 3.1b
If applicable for the stated purpose, materials include educator guidance for differentiated instruction and activities for students who have demonstrated proficiency in grade-level skills.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition lessons include “Writing in the Content Areas” callouts that educators can use to differentiate instruction for students who have already met grade-level handwriting skills. For example, the “Writing in the Content Areas” callout at the bottom of unit 3 guides educators to have students write a paragraph about their state’s symbols. In another example of differentiation in unit 3, “Writing in the Content Areas,” students create their own invitation, like the one in the student book. In unit 4, “Writing in the Content Areas,” educators have students write a business letter to a company, a newspaper, or an acquaintance. These activities extend the daily lesson presented to all students.

In addition to the opportunities in the daily lessons through “Writing in the Content Areas,” the grade 3 Teacher Edition suggests educators assign “Handwriting Activity Cards” to differentiate instruction and allow students to practice skills independently. For example, card 8 lets students practice tricky letters, such as cursive b, l, e, a, and o. Card 15 instructs students to write the twelve months of the year in cursive. In another card activity, students write a narrative paragraph. Students use these cards in centers, small groups, or independently for extra practice or enrichment.

Evaluation for 3.1c
Materials include educator guidance for providing specially designed instruction (SDI) for students receiving supports and services through special education.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition provides specific guidance for educators to support students who receive special education services. First, the materials include a section titled “When Should I Call the Occupational Therapist?” This section highlights ways the educator and the therapist can work together to support struggling students. For example, “An occupational therapist can help identify and treat underlying problems, facilitate development of handwriting skills, and help devise accommodations to enable the student to participate in classroom activities successfully.” The second page provides a checklist that the educator uses to determine when to consult with a therapist. The checklist scenarios help the educator assess instructional effects and decide whether to consult with the occupational therapist. For example, the checklist directs the educator to document interventions and outcomes. One scenario notes that after opportunities to refine pencil control, the student continues to demonstrate poor pencil control. The checklist identifies this outcome as an indicator that consultation with an occupational therapist may be appropriate.

In addition to the checklist used for therapist consultation, the grade 3 Teacher Edition includes an “Occupational Therapist Tip” on lesson pages to help educators support students who receive special education services. One example in unit 4, “Slanted Surfaces,” guides the educator to have the student write on a slanted surface to promote appropriate wrist extension. The materials also suggest that students write on the wall or board to strengthen wrist extension. Another “Occupational Therapist Tip” in unit 3 suggests that educators work on finger dexterity and promote a proper grasp pattern by having students hold the pencil in the correct position and slowly inch their middle finger, pointer finger, and thumb together toward the top of the pencil, then reverse direction back to the normal position. The “Occupational Therapist Tips” provide practical strategies to use with students who receive special education services.

Evaluation for 3.2a
Educator-led supplemental programs include explicit (direct) prompts and guidance to support the educator in modeling and explaining the skill(s) to be learned.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition provides guidance and prompts to help educators model and explain handwriting skills with the use of a “Model,” “Practice,” “Evaluate” lesson cycle. Each section of the lesson cycle includes explicit prompts to support educators. For example, in unit 3, the materials include prompts for educators to first “talk about cursive q,” then “write cursive q on guidelines on the board as you say the letter formation.” In the “Practice” section of the lesson cycle, the materials prompt the educator to “ask students to complete the student page.” Finally, the guidance prompts the educator to use the provided questions to support students’ self-evaluation. Each lesson includes similar prompts throughout the lesson cycle.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition also provides educators with additional “Teacher Tips” to guide them as they model and explain the skills taught. These specialized tips offer guidance that aligns with the skill taught on the page, and provide ideas for whole-class or individual work to help students learn the new skill. The “Teacher Tips” also include ways to review specific techniques and to recognize and overcome misconceptions. For example, in unit 2, the “Teacher Tips” guide the educator to use guidelines for correct letter formation. The educator can use colored chalk to draw the guidelines and identify the headline, midline, baseline, and descender space. The “Teacher Tips” included throughout the grade 3 Handwriting program provide additional guidance for educators to review techniques, address misconceptions, and model handwriting skills.

Evaluation for 3.2b
Educator-led supplemental programs include educator guidance and recommendations for effective delivery and facilitation using a variety of instructional approaches.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition outlines a variety of instructional approaches for effective delivery and facilitation. One approach the program offers to help educators is through “Teacher Tips,” which educators can find throughout many of the lessons in the program. For example, one tip discusses “descenders.” The tip first defines “descender,” then suggests an activity students can do to practice the specific skill. In the activity, students trace the descender with chalk or a marker to highlight spacing and placement on the guidelines. In another approach, students evaluate the educator. In this approach, the educator writes several uppercase and lowercase letters on the board with obvious errors, and, with the educator’s help, the students evaluate the letters using the models in the book.

Virtual tools in the My ZB Portal or via a QR code offer another way to support effective instruction, including the Animated Letter Model available on the online portal. The educator can use this tool to model letter formation for students. The materials also provide practice masters for students to practice skills. The Practice Masters sheets include a QR code that students can use to access a digital tutor for the practice skill.

Evaluation for 3.2c
Materials include guidance for educators on recommended structures (e.g., whole group, small group, individual) to support effective implementation.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition “Fast, Efficient Instruction” section provides recommendations on whole-group, independent, and at-home practice that educators can use to implement the program. The “Program Components” section notes that the Practice Masters sheets “can be used in small groups, centers, or for homework.” Each lesson design includes whole-group instruction in the “Model” section. Students complete the practice portion independently, and then meet with the educator to self-evaluate their work.

The activity cards included with grade 3 materials support the program’s implementation. Educators assign these activities to students to supplement the program, and can assign the cards to small groups, for independent work, or during center time.

Evaluation for 3.3a
Materials include educator guidance on providing linguistic accommodations for various levels of language proficiency [as defined by the English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS)], which are designed to engage students in using increasingly more academic language.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition provides guidance for educators on how to provide linguistic accommodations for different levels of language proficiency, and to encourage students to use increasingly academic vocabulary. Most lessons include “Emergent Bilingual Tips” as additional guidance. For example, unit 1 includes an “Emergent Bilingual Tip” that encourages educators to use Total Physical Response (TPR) to demonstrate proper spacing and build listening comprehension. Another example in unit 3 focuses on vocabulary building. Educators use this tip to explain the term join to students. Next, the tip expands the term join to joint and explains, “Joints are parts of the body that connect other parts, such as knees and elbows.” Then the tip connects this to joining in cursive handwriting, which is similar to the joints of the body. In unit 3, the “Emergent Bilingual Tips” provide guidance to help emergent bilingual (EB) students with homonyms. The educator writes the homonyms their and there on the board, discusses the meanings, then writes they’re on the board and discusses the contraction. Lastly, students write sentences with the three homonyms: their, there, and they’re.

The “Emergent Bilingual Students” tips appear throughout lessons in the grade 3 Teacher Edition. These tips provide guidance on multiple subjects related to linguistic accommodations, including vocabulary, compound words, cognates, capitalization of proper nouns, and digraphs. These tips encourage students to use more academic language. However, these tips do not include guidance for educators on providing linguistic accommodations differentiated by language proficiency levels.

Evaluation for 3.3b
Materials include implementation guidance to support educators in effectively using the materials in state-approved bilingual and English as a Second Language (ESL) programs.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition includes a “Handwriting Instruction and Emergent Bilingual Students” section that provides educators with information such as “skills acquired under one language can support learning skills in a second language system.” The section also states that “handwriting performance in one language directly connects with handwriting performance in another language.” Additionally, the page includes information about Zaner-Bloser La escritura as a parallel instructional program to the English program.

The instructional pages in the grade 3 Teacher Edition include specialized tips that guide instruction in the lesson’s skills. For instance, the “Emergent Bilingual Student Tip” offers ways to reinforce English language learning skills, such as reading, writing, and speaking. The section also includes ideas to help students from diverse cultural backgrounds understand lesson concepts. For example, in unit 1, the materials provide a tip for building background knowledge of the poem students will read and write about during the lesson. Within the text, visuals help students understand the word lighthouse. Additionally, most lessons include tips for educators as they work with EB students. One tip addresses “Lesson Management,” with guidance that helps educators balance rote letter-formation practice with higher-order thinking as they ask questions and discuss concepts.

Evaluation for 3.3c
If designed for dual language immersion (DLI) programs, materials include resources that outline opportunities to address metalinguistic transfer from English to the partner language.

This guidance does not apply because the program is not designed for dual language immersion (DLI) programs.

Evaluation for 7.1a
Materials include explicit (direct) and systematic handwriting instruction (e.g., sequenced from lowercase letters to uppercase letters) in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition provides educators with a systematic handwriting program aligned with the grade-level TEKS. First, the Teacher Edition includes a “Table of Contents” that outlines the systematic progression of letter instruction. In unit 1, the program reviews all manuscript letters before students are introduced to the basic strokes. Next, in units 2 and 3, the program introduces the lowercase letters by beginning stroke type, followed by the uppercase letters. After students learn and practice all the letters, they apply what they learned in unit 4.

In addition, the grade 3 Teacher Edition provides explicit, systematic handwriting instruction aligned with grade-level TEKS. These materials follow a “Model,” “Practice,” and “Evaluate” sequence throughout each lesson. This structure offers a direct approach to teaching handwriting skills. First, the lesson objective is stated clearly. One objective in unit 3 reads, “Practice writing lowercase cursive i.” In the first step, “Model,” the educator explains the skill and uses various modeling techniques. For example, in unit 3, students practice the lowercase i. During the “Model” section, the educator uses guidelines on the board to demonstrate correct letter formation. The Teacher Edition also directs the educator to use the Animated Letter Model and sky-writing to model letter formation. After the educator completes the “Model” section, the next step in the lesson cycle is “Practice,” in which students complete the practice assignment independently. The final step involves students self-evaluating their work. During this step, the educator guides the evaluation by asking questions such as, “Does your i begin and end with an undercurve?” or “Does your ending stroke touch the midline?”

Evaluation for 7.1b
Materials include frequent opportunities for students to develop and refine handwriting skills through guided practice and independent practice in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

The grade 3 Student Edition includes opportunities for independent practice to develop and refine handwriting skills aligned with grade-level TEKS. For example, unit 3 reviews lowercase cursive letters n, m, y, x, v, and z. This page provides an independent practice activity in which students write color words and phrases such as maroon, violet, and “a color mix” to refine their handwriting.

In addition to the Student Edition, grade 3 also provides students with independent practice activities to develop and refine their handwriting skills with the use of Practice Masters pages. For example, “Practice Master 48” requires independent practice of the capital letter O. On this page, students practice writing their capital cursive O, as well as names that begin with O, such as Oakland, Oz, and Oxford, and sentences using capital O.

Evaluation for 7.1c
Materials include guidance for educators to provide feedback to students to develop and refine their handwriting skills (e.g., writing position, writing grip, letter spacing, size, slant, directionality) in alignment with grade-level TEKS as appropriate for the program's stated purpose.

The grade 3 Teacher Edition guides educators on how to give feedback to help students develop and refine their handwriting skills in alignment with grade-level TEKS. As the educator develops the lesson, the final step in the lesson cycle is “Evaluate.” During this step, the student stops writing and circles their best letter before the student and educator meet to evaluate the writing. The materials include questions the educator can use to guide the discussion. For example, in unit 3, the questions include, “Does your upper loop close near the midline?” or “Does your lower loop close at the baseline?” This part of the lesson gives the educator questions to use as they evaluate the student. As the educator meets with the student, they can use specific feedback from “Corrective Strategies for Cursive Letters.” This section of the Teacher Edition provides specific guidance for educators to use as students develop and refine handwriting skills. For example, if the student’s letters slant in different directions, educators prompt students to check their paper position and pull strokes in the proper direction.

In addition, the grade 3 Teacher Edition guides educators on how to provide feedback as they evaluate students’ handwriting. “Teacher Tips” in unit 3 include a “Freeze” exercise in which the educator tells students to freeze and check their sitting, paper, and pencil positions. Educators then help students make adjustments before instructing them to thaw and continue their practice.