Grade-level worksheet
Third Grade Handwriting Worksheets
Cursive, one family at a time. Trace words made from the undercurve letters, then join them on your own below.
- Ages
- 8–9
- Template
- Trace and Copy
- Font
- Playwrite USA Traditional
- Guide lines
- Three-line
- Paper
- US Letter or A4
Free printable PDF
Download this sheet as shown and print it at home or school. No account needed.
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About this worksheet
Third grade is when many classrooms focus on cursive. Lowercase cursive letters are usually taught in families that share a starting stroke, and the undercurve letters i, t, u, and w come first in many programs because they begin with the same simple upward swing. Short words built from those letters let students practice joins from the start instead of writing letters in isolation.
This sheet traces cursive words in a traditional US cursive style, each followed by blank rows. As new families are introduced, such as the loop letters e, l, h, and k or the downcurve letters a, c, d, and o, type words that use them into the editor and print a fresh sheet.
- 01
Undercurve letters first
i, t, u, and w share one starting stroke, so the first joins come easily.
- 02
Words, not just letters
Joining letters inside words is the skill cursive is for.
- 03
Grow the word list
Add words for each new letter family as your class moves through cursive.
Other grades
Questions
- Which cursive letters should a third grader learn first?
- Many programs begin with the undercurve letters i, t, u, w, then r, s, p, and j, followed by the loop, downcurve, and overcurve families. Teaching letters that share a stroke together makes each join easier.
- Is cursive still taught in schools?
- In many places, yes. A number of US states and districts include cursive in their standards, usually somewhere in grades 2 to 5, so check your school’s curriculum.
- Are the third grade handwriting worksheets free?
- Yes. The sample sheet on this page is a free PDF in US Letter or A4, no account needed. Creating and previewing your own version is free too; printing and downloading custom sheets come with Pro, which also removes the preview watermark.