Cursive S

Cursive s closes on itself: it rises to the midline, curves back to the left and shuts against its own entry stroke just above the baseline.

Cursive capital S and lowercase s written on a four-line school ruling

Written in the traditional US school model — the looped, joined cursive of the Zaner-Bloser and D'Nealian copybooks, which is the model every sheet on this site is set in.

How to write cursive s

  1. Swing up from the baseline to the midline in one rising stroke.
  2. At the top, curve back to the left into a small point rather than a round hump.
  3. Come down and close the shape against your rising stroke, just above the baseline.
  4. Exit along the baseline into the next letter.

The capital S

Capital S is full height, with a loop at the top line and a much wider bowl that closes at the baseline.

Where it goes wrong

Keep the upper and lower curves the same size. Flatten the lower one and s sits on the line like a c; swell the upper one and it reads as an e.

Print the s practice sheet

Printable cursive s practice sheet — first page
Printable s worksheet, US Letter Printable s worksheet, A4

What is on the sheet

  1. Lowercase s
    sss
    Write three letters s, exactly as in the model. Trace the pale row first, then write the empty rows on your own.
  2. Capital S
    S S S
    Write the capital S three times, with a space between them. Capitals fill the full height from the baseline to the top line.
  3. Words: sister and grass
    sister grass
    Write both words as in the model, with a clear space between them. Keep every s the same size and the same slant.
  4. Word: sunset
    sunset
    Write the word in one movement where you can, then go back for any dots and crossbars.

Print at 100% on US Letter — not “fit to page”. The ruling is classroom size, and scaling the page down makes every letter the wrong size; the 10 cm scale at the foot of the sheet is there to check against. Every block gives you a model row in full ink, a pale row to trace over and empty ruled rows of your own.

All twenty-six on one page: the cursive alphabet chart.

The other letters

Cursive F Cursive G Cursive J Cursive Z Cursive T Cursive B Cursive R Cursive K Cursive Q Cursive I Cursive L Cursive D Cursive A Cursive H Cursive E Cursive N Cursive M Cursive P Cursive V Cursive C Cursive X Cursive W Cursive Y Cursive O Cursive U

Check your s against the model

Write the sheet by hand, photograph it, and our AI scores letter formation, spacing and slant against the same model you traced.

Check your handwriting free

Tricky Letters: r, s, j, p, y and z

In the course, s is taught with the letters that share its movement — that is where to go once the shape itself is no longer the problem.

Tricky Letters: r, s, j, p, y and z The full cursive course