Cursive Letter L Practice

Say that l is one tall loop and nothing else, then trace the solid rows with a light touch. Dashed and dotted rows follow, with blank lines last. Eight minutes is plenty. Hold the paper slanted slightly left for right-handers and right for left-handers, and note the loop should lean the same way every time. Finish with the words line, little and look, circling the best loop in each.

Lowercase l is the cleanest tall loop, which makes it the reference for b, h, k and f. The pencil goes up and left, turns at the top, comes down the same path and sweeps out to the right. A loop that is too fat or leans backward is the usual flaw. Capital L is a big sweeping version of the same stroke. It follows K, and it leads to M, which changes the pattern from loops to arches.

Start on Medium. Switch Line size to Large if the loop comes out narrow and cramped, because the extra room shows the shape clearly. Small suits writers who want to fit more on a line. Switch Style to Print to compare a straight stick with the cursive loop, which makes the point that cursive travels without lifting.

Why is l such a good letter to practice?

It is the pure form of the tall loop used in b, h, k and f. A good l carries over to those letters, which is useful on a busy week.

How wide should the loop of l be?

Narrow, about the width of a pencil tip at the base. A fat loop makes l look like a balloon and affects spacing for the whole word.

Does l lean?

Slightly right, in line with the slant of the rest of the writing. Keep the slant the same across every letter so words do not look jumpy.