Handwriting Styles Guide:
Find the One That Fits

The most fundamental choice in handwriting is between print, where each letter stands alone, and cursive, where letters join through continuous pen movement. Print is easier to learn and read; cursive is generally faster once mastered and encourages a smoother, more personal hand.

Neither is objectively better. The right choice depends on your goals: speed, legibility, or the pleasure of a flowing hand. If you are starting cursive from scratch, the complete cursive guide below covers letterforms and joins step by step.

Beyond everyday writing sits a family of decorative styles: faux calligraphy, brush-style lettering, and the header and banner styles that fill bullet journals. These are drawn as much as written, and they reward a different kind of practice focused on form, weight, and rhythm rather than speed.

They are also the most approachable creative styles — you can produce something that looks polished with an ordinary pen and a little technique.

Schools teach handwriting through named curricula — D'Nealian, Zaner-Bloser, Getty-Dubay and others — each with its own letterforms, joining rules, and progression from print to cursive. If you are teaching handwriting or choosing a homeschool approach, the differences between them matter more than they first appear.

The right style also depends on who is writing. Learners coming to English from another writing system — Arabic, Chinese, Cyrillic — face a different set of challenges than native writers, and benefit from a style and approach built around those differences.

Match the style to what you actually write and why. Use this as a quick reference.