View largerCursive M: How to Write Uppercase M and Lowercase m
A big model of cursive M and m with step-by-step directions, plus practice pages for lowercase m, uppercase M, joins and m words.
Download the Letter M worksheets
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Print at 100% (actual size) for the cleanest tracing lines.
About these letter M worksheets
This is cursive M and m in modern cursive: joined lowercase letters with simple capitals. How to write lowercase m: start at the midline. Pull down to the baseline, push up and go over the first hump, pull down, go over the second hump, pull down and flick out. How to write uppercase M: pull straight down on the left. Go back to the top, slant down to the middle, slant up to the top and pull straight down.
Lowercase m ends with a flick on the baseline that swings straight up into the next letter, so mmm and words like mom are written without lifting the pencil. In the usual teaching order, m is learned with the overcurve letters (n, m, x, y, v, z).
The four worksheets below start with a large chart of M, m and mmm, then give a page each for lowercase m, uppercase M, and joins and words such as mom, map, mud, milk, moon and mitt.
Standards
Texas TEKS Grade 2 (handwriting)develop handwriting by accurately forming all cursive letters using appropriate strokes when connecting lettersTexas TEKS Grade 3 (handwriting)write complete words, thoughts, and answers legibly in cursive leaving appropriate spaces between words
How to use them
- Start with the chart page. Read the steps aloud while your child traces the big m with a finger, then writes it on the rows below.
- On the lowercase page, trace each single m, then the joined mmm, then write your own on the blank rows.
- Use the uppercase page for M and names like Max, Mia and Mo.
- Finish with the words page: the joins, the words mom, map and mud, and the sentence “Mom made muffins.”
Teaching tips for M
- Lowercase m: Start at the midline. Pull down to the baseline, push up and go over the first hump, pull down, go over the second hump, pull down and flick out.
- Uppercase M: Pull straight down on the left. Go back to the top, slant down to the middle, slant up to the top and pull straight down.
- Watch for an extra hump or a missing one. Say it while writing: down, up and over, down, up and over, down.
- Print at actual size (100%). The gray letters are solid, so they copy cleanly, and each row has a black model at both ends for left-handed writers.
Questions about letter M
How do you write a cursive m?
Start at the midline. Pull down to the baseline, push up and go over the first hump, pull down, go over the second hump, pull down and flick out.
How do you write a capital M in cursive?
In modern cursive: pull straight down on the left. Go back to the top, slant down to the middle, slant up to the top and pull straight down. Capitals don't join to the next letter, so write the M, then start the lowercase letters close by.
How does cursive m join to other letters?
The m ends with a small flick on the baseline. Keep going from the flick up into the next letter without lifting the pencil, as in ma, me and mi.