Cursive A: how to write the letter A in cursive
The lowercase cursive a is a small oval closed at the midline, then a slant down and an undercurve out: in Zaner-Bloser terms, downcurve, undercurve, slant, undercurve. It belongs to the downcurve letters (start by curving around, like a and o) and is one of the easier letters to learn. Below you will find the capital and lowercase A on three-line guides, stroke-by-stroke instructions, practice words, and a free printable worksheet in the same school cursive style.
Lowercase a at a glance
- Strokes
- 1 (downcurve, undercurve, slant, undercurve)
- Starts
- at the below the midline
- Ends
- with an undercurve up to the midline
- Family
- downcurve letters
Capital A at a glance
- Strokes
- 1 (downcurve, undercurve, slant, undercurve)
- Starts
- at the below the topline
- Next letter
- joins without lifting the pencil
Capital cursive A
Lowercase cursive a
Free cursive A worksheet
Cursive A practice worksheet
1 page · US Letter, prints on A4 · free
Capital A and lowercase a to trace, copy and write on your own, plus four practice words (apple, ant, away, about). Three-line guides, standard school cursive.
How to write a lowercase a in cursive
- Start just below the midline. Curve down and around to the left to make the oval (the downcurve).
- Make an undercurve up to the midline, closing the oval where you started.
- Slant down to the baseline, retracing the right side of the oval.
- Make an undercurve up to the midline, ready to join the next letter.
Tip: Say "around, up, down, out" while writing. The whole letter is one continuous motion.
How to write a capital A in cursive
- Start just below the topline. Curve down and around to the left to make a large oval that touches the baseline.
- Make an undercurve up to the topline, closing the oval.
- Slant down to the baseline, then make an undercurve up to the midline. The capital A joins the next letter.
The capital A joins the next letter, so names and sentence openers are written in one motion.
Cursive words with the letter a
Practice the a inside real words so the joins become automatic. All of these appear on the worksheet.
Each of these words has its own page with the joins explained: see cursive words.
Common mistakes with the cursive A
- Leaving a gap at the top of the oval so the a reads like a u.
- Making the oval taller than the midline.
- Lifting the pencil between the oval and the slant.
Letters that use the same motion
The a is easier to master alongside letters that start the same way. Practice these together:
Cursive A questions
Does the capital A connect to the next letter in cursive?
Yes. In standard school cursive the capital A ends with an exit stroke that joins the next letter, so a word like "Apple" is written without lifting the pencil.
Where does the lowercase a end?
The lowercase a ends on the baseline with an upward exit stroke. The next letter starts from that stroke, which keeps the whole word connected.
Is the cursive A hard to learn?
The a is one of the easier letters of the cursive alphabet. Say "around, up, down, out" while writing. The whole letter is one continuous motion.
Which cursive style is the A shown in?
The letters on this page and in the worksheet use the standard school cursive taught in most US classrooms (the Zaner-Bloser style). D'Nealian cursive differs slightly in slant and in a few capitals, but the strokes described here apply to both.