Huffington Post. February 12, 2013. (English). -Do you remember practicing your cursive writing on dotted and lined pieces of paper in elementary school? It’s becoming a relic of the past, up there with chalkboards and “See Spot Run” for today’s children. More than 45 states are moving toward eliminating cursive writing from their elementary curriculums by 2014, instead focusing on making sure kids have basic keyboarding skills by the time they leave elementary school, USA Today reported. The average time spent on handwriting in schools has dwindled down to 15 minutes from 30.
Some states are advocating for a return to caring about penmanship; an Indiana senator is trying to get cursive writing back in school’s curriculum for a second time after her first attempt floundered in the House.
“I see no reason to learn cursive,” wrote Huff/Post50 Facebook fan Jamie Wieloch Greco. “Whether we like it or not, it is outdated and the time allotted to it can be spent teaching more necessary skills.
Manners
A majority of our readers said the younger generation needs to learn manners, "because they sure don't seem to learn it at home!" wrote Huff/Post50 fan Carmen Brandes.
How to change a tire
Basic car maintenance was one thing our readers said younger people need to learn.
Home Economics
Readers said they thought home economics should be brought back to schools to teach today's children "practical life skills" such as cooking.
How to balance a checkbook
- Personal accounting came up as a lesson young people need to learn.
Geography
We're living in a truly global world these days, meaning everyone should get familiar with the countries around the world (not to mention the states).
Recess
Bringing back recess would be a way to combat childhood obesity, wrote one Huff/Post50 fan.
Basic math without calculators
- Calculators exist on every phone, and computers do all of our basic math for us, from the checkout lines at your local grocery store to Amazon. “Using their heads to solve math problems and not computerized devices,” would be a great skill to learn, wrote Huff/Post50 fan Barbara Hoppenfeld.
How to tie shoes
- Tying shoes came up as a skill for today’s children to learn.
Art
"Teaching cursive handwriting isn't time especially well spent, but working on other grapho-motor skills and control, like formal drawing, and graphic representation, might serve children better," wrote Huff/Post50 Facebook fan Angel Johnson .
Physical Education
- Similar to bringing back recess to lower childhood obesity, one reader advocated for a return to old school physical education. “We had extreme calistenics (sic) [and] workouts,” wrote Vicki Morgan Melton. “Everyone was in good shape.”
Grammar and punctuation
- “OMG, I’ll TTYL, G2G, byeeeeee!!!!!” With text lingo surpassing proper grammar and punctuation, teaching children and teens the importance of correct English was second to manners.
KidZania Journal 