Cursive S: How to Write Uppercase S and Lowercase s

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A big model of cursive S and s with step-by-step directions, plus practice pages for lowercase s, uppercase S, joins and s words.

Download the Letter S worksheets

About these letter S worksheets

This is cursive S and s in modern cursive: joined lowercase letters with simple capitals. How to write lowercase s: start on the baseline. Swing up to a point at the midline, curve down and around to close the s on the baseline, and flick out. How to write uppercase S: start just below the top line on the right. Curve back, then curve forward, and finish on the baseline on the left.

Lowercase s ends with a flick on the baseline that swings straight up into the next letter, so sss and words like sun are written without lifting the pencil. In the usual teaching order, s is learned with the undercurve letters (i, t, u, w, e, l, b, h, f, k, r, s, j, p).

The four worksheets below start with a large chart of S, s and sss, then give a page each for lowercase s, uppercase S, and joins and words such as sun, sit, sock, seal, star and swim.

Standards

  • Texas TEKS Grade 2 (handwriting)develop handwriting by accurately forming all cursive letters using appropriate strokes when connecting letters
  • Texas TEKS Grade 3 (handwriting)write complete words, thoughts, and answers legibly in cursive leaving appropriate spaces between words

How to use them

  1. Start with the chart page. Read the steps aloud while your child traces the big s with a finger, then writes it on the rows below.
  2. On the lowercase page, trace each single s, then the joined sss, then write your own on the blank rows.
  3. Use the uppercase page for S and names like Sam, Sue and Sol.
  4. Finish with the words page: the joins, the words sun, sit and sock, and the sentence “Sam sees seven seals.”

Teaching tips for S

  • Lowercase s: Start on the baseline. Swing up to a point at the midline, curve down and around to close the s on the baseline, and flick out.
  • Uppercase S: Start just below the top line on the right. Curve back, then curve forward, and finish on the baseline on the left.
  • Watch for a print s. The cursive s swings up to a point at the midline, then curves down and closes on the baseline.
  • 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 S

How do you write a cursive s?

Start on the baseline. Swing up to a point at the midline, curve down and around to close the s on the baseline, and flick out.

How do you write a capital S in cursive?

In modern cursive: start just below the top line on the right. Curve back, then curve forward, and finish on the baseline on the left. Capitals don't join to the next letter, so write the S, then start the lowercase letters close by.

How does cursive s join to other letters?

The s ends with a small flick on the baseline. Keep going from the flick up into the next letter without lifting the pencil, as in sa, se and si.