Lesson 4 Penmanship Lesson in the One

Lesson 4
Penmanship Lesson in the One-Room Schoolhouse
Carolyn Sheppard-Morristown Central School
Lesson Plan: Penmanship Lesson Using the Palmer Method
Disciplines (Subject Area) Cursive Writing, Reading
Grade Levels: 4
Time Frame: 20 minutes
Materials Needed: Palmer Alphabet Document, dry erase boards, markers,
writing paper with dotted lines, pencils, copies of George Couper penmanship
sampler from photo in schoolhouse (1860)
Learning Objectives: The students will be taught to make cursive letters using the
Palmer Method of handwriting.
Procedures: Give each child a copy of the Palmer alphabet. Read biography of
Austin Palmer to class. Discuss proper posture and form as emphasized in article.
Choose a few letters and guide the children in the correct method of making them
on the chalkboard. Then have children practice on the dry erase boards and later,
on dotted lined paper. Have children examine and read the first schoolmaster’s
sampler of The Ten Commandments.
List of Documents Used: (notations ) Palmer alphabet, biography of Austin Palmer
from Country Living magazine-November 1997, George Couper’s Pennsylvania
Fractured Writing Sampler-1860
Special Notes (if necessary)