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FAQs

FAQs

How often should I use the WRITE NOW™ book to improve my handwriting? Expand
How often you use the workbook, how much you practice at a time and how repetitive you should be are all personal choices. Your handwriting is something that you can take ownership of in a way that is meaningful to you.
That being said, we do have some general recommendations:
  • Plan on practicing no more than a page or two at one sitting.
  • Spend some time during your practice doing some self-assessment. Choose which letters or joins you did well, mark them and try to replicate those. Choose which ones you want to improve and make a mental plan (e.g. “I want the ‘h’ ascender downstroke to be straighter”.)
  • Put your practice to use as soon as you can. For instance, try to avoid practicing a single letter over and over.
  • While you might be tempted to jump around in the ebook (which is okay to do) we suggest going page by page, reading all the material as you go.
  • Do start with the “Pre-Test” sample of your current handwriting and leave that page to the end without erasing it (take a screenshot just to keep from loosing it accidentally). It will be important to see how your handwriting has changed over time when you finish the book and do the “Post-test".
While you may experience improved handwriting after just a few sessions, most gains will come from repeated practice over time. As you use this app, try out your new handwriting on other writing apps, whiteboards, or with pen and paper for thank you notes, other correspondence or school work.
Enjoy the journey!
How often should my students use their workbook? Expand
For students, shorter, meaningful and regular practice is better than longer and/or sporadic sessions. Here are the recommended lesson times for the Getty-Dubay® Italic Handwriting Series Books A-G:
Kindergarten — 25-50 min/wk
1st Grade — 30-100 min/wk
2nd Grade — 45-100 min/wk
3rd Grade — 60-120 min/wk
4th Grade — 60-120 min/wk
5th Grade — 60-120 min/wk
6th Grade — 40 min/wk
Some general recommendations:
  • Plan on practicing no more than a page at one sitting.
  • Spend some time during practice doing some self-assessment. Encourage the student to choose which letters (or joins) they did well, have them mark them and try to replicate those. Ask them to choose which ones they feel do not match the model and therefore need a mental plan (e.g. “I want the ‘h’ ascender downstroke to be straighter”.)
  • Put practice to use as soon as you can. For instance, try to avoid asking them to practice a single letter over and over.
  • While you might be tempted to jump around in the book, we suggest going page by page, reading all the material as you go.
  • Do start with the “Pre-Test” sample of your student's current handwriting. It will be important to see how your student's handwriting has changed over time when the book is finished and the student does the “Post-test".
While you may experience improved handwriting after just a few sessions, most gains will come from repeated practice over time. Handwriting is a lifelong skill built up over many years of study. As you use the workbook, encourage the student to try out your new handwriting on other school work, especially spelling and vocabulary lists, writing short compositions, thank you notes, and other correspondence.
How do I continue to practice when I'm done with the workbook? Expand
The authors have created complete guides, intending that once you finish the book (or the Italic Handwriting Series), you are ready to continue the handwriting journey with your own everyday writing. That being said, these days we don’t get the opportunity to write as much as we like. So, these are our suggestions for ways to get extra practice, ranging from low tech to high tech:
  • Use tracing paper placed over the workbook pages, held in place with paper clips.
  • Sign up for our free DIY Worksheet Creator to make your own practice worksheets.
  • Watch our Handwriting Success video and follow along as the authors Barbara Getty and Inga Dubay take you through the alphabet — twice!
  • Download the Getty-Dubay Font that joins as you type to create your own worksheets easily with a word processor.
  • Take a picture of the page with a tablet, then use a stylus to mark up the image digitally.
  • Buy our Getty-Dubay App to use the entire workbook as an ebook that you can write in with a stylus.
  • For the Getty-Dubay Italic Handwriting Series Books, we offer a complete set of practice pages aligned with the workbook lessons.
What's different about the International Editions? Expand

International Editions of Getty-Dubay Italic books are formatted for Print On Demand (POD) for availability internationally for retail, schools and wholesale orders. These books have identical content to the editions available in the USA, but some have a higher page count due to pages that require the use of ink pens being printed on a single side only. The Italic Handwriting Series books also accommodate regional spelling, but do not include the Reading Looped Cursive supplements that appear in the USA editions. Currently, our International Edition books utilize perfect binding only, whereas our USA editions have either saddle-stitched binding (for the Italic Handwriting Series) or a special lay-flat perfect binding (for Italic Letters). International Editions have different ISBN's than the USA editions. Shop our International Editions.

What do "basic" and "cursive" mean? Expand

Print / Basic / Manuscript: Writing with no letter joins. Some systems call their printing "ball and stick."

Cursive / Script / Longhand: Writing with joined letters. Used to increase the speed and ease of writing by limiting the number of times one lifts the pen or pencil from the paper.

Serif: An addition to the letter used in cursive writing to initiate the join.

Letterform: The path the writing tool takes to form the letter, numeral or punctuation.

Calligraphy: Literally means "Beautiful writing". Used for formal correspondence, presentations, or artwork. Not intended to be written quickly.  Tools: edged pen and ink (either felt, cartridge or dipped), or brush.

Handwriting: Everyday writing used for communication and notes, often with the necessity for speed and legibility.  Tools: pencil, felt-tip or ball-point pen, crayon, etc.

What's the difference between DIY Worksheets and the Blackline Masters CD-ROM? Expand

Blackline Masters provide dozens of additional practice sheets that target specific letters or joins. Each instruction page in the Getty-Dubay Italic Handwriting Series Books A – G has additional practice sheets on the Blackline Masters CD-ROM that provide writing cues such as stroke sequence and starting point.

The DIY Worksheets are a free online resource that, like the Blackline Masters, extend your Getty-Dubay Italic book. With the DIY Worksheets, you get to choose your own text, but stroke sequence and starting point are not displayed. DIY Worksheets are also a resource for the Getty-Dubay Italic handwriting book for adults: Write Now. To use a musical analogy, the Blackline Masters CD-ROM is your scale book and the DIY Worksheets can be your etudes!

How do I choose the correct Getty-Dubay book for my student? Expand

The Getty-Dubay Italic Handwriting Series is a developmentally appropriate course that starts with Book A, is designed for use in Kindergarten, and progresses by grade through Book G. Each book supports the motor skill, attention span, and content level of its respective grade level.

Try our Book Selector tool to get an idea of where to start.

If your student needs remedial handwriting work, it is best to use that Getty-Dubay Italic book that matches the student's language skill.  For example, an 8th grader who needs help with basic italic would probably be happier using Book G, instead of going back to Books A or B.

I homeschool three children. What is the most economical way for me to share their materials? Expand

Getty-Dubay Italic books have the advantage of being hands-on. They are intended to be enjoyed in a way that brings a sense of ownership for the student. As such, they are “consumable” for each student, and priced accordingly.

Using tracing paper is a good way for the student to work on a page multiple times, or print out our blank ruled lines. It is not fair use to photocopy any workbook for use by other students.

These are our suggestions for ways to get extra practice:
  • Sign up for our free DIY Worksheet Creator to make your own practice worksheets.
  • Watch our Handwriting Success video and follow along as the authors Barbara Getty and Inga Dubay take you through the alphabet — twice!
  • Download the Getty-Dubay Font that joins as you type to create your own worksheets easily with a word processor.
  • Take a look at our Alphabet in Your Pocket origami worksheets, then make your own!
  • Take a picture of the page with a tablet, then use a stylus to mark up the image digitally.
  • Download our Getty-Dubay App to use the entire workbook as an ebook that you can write in with a tablet and stylus.
  • For the Getty-Dubay Italic Handwriting Series Books, we offer a complete set of practice pages aligned with the workbook lessons.
My daughter is in the first grade and wants to learn cursive now, like the big kids. She seems determined. Should I hold her back? Expand

As long as your child has mastered the letter shapes there is no reason to keep her from going ahead. Cursive italic is presented at the end of Book C, beginning on page 38. If possible, get her to work through a couple of earlier pages in Book C prior to trying her hand on the cursive joins. The blackline masters from Book C will be helpful here.

Help! Motivating my young son to write has been a real problem. Do you have any practical suggestions for me? Expand

Here are a few ideas you can try with your son: 1) Practice on blank paper with large felt pens. These come in a variety of bright and stimulating colors. 2) Write with crayons. 3) Write his letters in sand or cornmeal. 4) Have him lay a jump rope down in the shape of the letters and make a game of hopping around the letters. 5) Ask him to try using letterforms in drawings (e.g. lots of n's for house shingles, w's for hair, etc.)  Find opportunities to help him make the letters and have fun at the same time.

Do you have any special hints about critiquing a child's handwriting? Should I praise even when I see there is room for improvement? Expand

Ask the child to look at the letter and tell you how it's different from the model. Is it wider, taller, thinner, smaller? Are the letters further apart than the model? Never, ever use the word "wrong." It is simply different from the model.

Encourage the child to assess his/her own writing, with your guidance.

I am an adult and am very embarrassed by my handwriting. Can I change my handwriting using italic? Expand

Yes. Write Now is easy to follow and designed specifically for adults. Also, get yourself a cursive desk strip and tape it to your desk at home or work. Not only does this serve as a constant reminder, but it also helps you remember the letter shapes. You need to re-train yourself, so don't expect it to happen overnight. Our manager taught herself using this method and it took her approximately 11 weeks to make the change to italic. See our handwriting tips for more information.

What is the difference between the two Getty-Dubay Italic calligraphy books? Expand
Getty-Dubay Italic Calligraphy: for School & Home is our latest book.  It is an introduction to calligraphy using the broader edged-pen nib sizes (3.5mm and 2mm) and a body height of 4 pen widths, which makes for a more robust-looking calligraphic style. This book also has online instructional videos for the worksheets and an online DIY worksheet tool that lets you custom make your own calligraphy practice sheets. It does not include instruction in handwriting, which is why this book is best paired with the the Getty-Dubay Italic Handwriting Series or Write Now: the Getty-Dubay Program for Handwriting Success.

Italic Letters: Calligraphy & Handwriting is a more complete book for calligraphy, entirely handwritten, that also includes both handwriting with a monoline tool (pen or perncil) and calligraphy practice with the smaller nib sizes. The body height for these letters is the more traditional 5 pen widths.
Are your books good for left-handed people? Expand

Our books useful no matter with which hand you write.  One way this is true is that where possible the page content is arranged carefully so that your writing hand does not cover up the handwriting model you are copying. For left handers we recommend having your wrist below the line of writing and slanting the paper down to the right — in other words, a slight turn in the clockwise direction. For calligraphy with the edged pen, we suggest turning the page even further clockwise, to a 90-degree angle. Having good over-all posture and enough space for comfortable movement of your arm are also important for a good handwriting experience.

For parents of left-handed children: Left-handedness is perfectly natural, but does present some challenges in our right-handed-centric world. The good news is that, with encouragement, left-handed writers do find ways to adapt. Never insist that the student change writing hands.

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  • About
    • About Us
    • In the Press
    • Testimonials
  • Handwriting
    • Italic Handwriting
    • For Kids
    • For Adults
    • Why Cursive?
    • Why Italic?
    • Italic Handwriting Samples
  • Calligraphy
    • Why Calligraphy?
    • Italic Calligraphy
    • For Kids
    • For Adults
    • Pens
    • Italic Calligraphy Samples
  • Products
    • All Getty-Dubay Products
    • App
    • Write Now
    • Italic Handwriting Series
    • Italic Letters
    • Italic Calligraphy for School and Home
    • Materials for Teachers
      & Homeschool
    • Fonts
  • Resources
    • Free Training & Tools
    • Book Selector
    • Handwriting Tips
    • FAQs
    • Style Comparison
    • Contact Us
  • News
  • Shop
    • Shop Workbooks & Materials
    • Shop Fonts
    • Shop Pens
    • Shop Bundles
    • Shop Greeting Cards
    • Shop Gift Cards
    • School Orders
    • Find a Store

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Publisher: Handwriting Success, LLC, Portland, OR USA
Distributor: Allport Editions, www.allport.com, 1.800.777.2844, Portland, OR USA

 

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