Name Tracing Sheets

Cursive A: capital A and lowercase a

Three pages to trace: capital A, lowercase a, and ant, apple and arm joined. The letters print in light gray without arrows, so the steps below say where each stroke goes.

Each line becomes its own page. Keep Aa–Zz or type any words.

Letters
Tracing style
Line size
Paper

In the print window pick your printer, or “Save as PDF” to keep a file. Set scale to 100%.

More optionsCapitals, lines, example, starting dots
On the sheet
Preview

Printed sample: Cursive A: capital A and lowercase a
The first page with the default settings, as it prints on US Letter paper.

How to write a cursive capital A

  1. Start just below the top line, a little right of center. Curve up and around to the left, down to the baseline and back up to close a large oval.
  2. Without lifting, go up to the top line on the right of the oval and pull a slant down to the baseline.
  3. Finish with a short curve up to the right.

On these sheets capital A joins the letter after it.

How to write a cursive lowercase a

  1. From the baseline, swing up to the midline.
  2. Curve back to the left and around, down to the baseline and up again to close a small oval, like a c that closes.
  3. Pull a short slant down the right side to the baseline and end with a small curve up.

Joining cursive a to other letters

Lowercase a begins with a downcurve, so the joining stroke from the letter before has to travel up and over the top of the oval before it curves down. In ca, ta and la the join comes up from the baseline and arches over. After b, o, v or w, which end at the midline, the join runs almost flat along the midline into the top of the a, as in boat and was.

The a leaves from the baseline, so whatever follows starts with an ordinary upstroke. The most common slip is an open top: the oval is not closed before the slant, and the a reads as a u.

Cursive A and print A

Print a is a circle and a straight line. Cursive a keeps that shape but adds the lead-in and the exit, and it leans to the right. Capital A changes the most: no point and no crossbar. Cursive capital A is a large oval with a slant on its right, really a tall lowercase a.

Print A with starting dots and arrows: letter A tracing worksheets.

Cursive a words

ant, apple, arm, ask, animal.

Next: cursive B. All 26 letters: cursive alphabet worksheets.

Questions

Why does cursive capital A look like a big lowercase a?

Traditional US cursive builds capital A from the same oval and slant as lowercase a, only taller, reaching the top line. The pointed A with a crossbar is a print letter and is not used in cursive.

My child’s cursive a looks like a u. What is wrong?

The oval is not closed. Ask the child to close the top of the a before pulling the slant down, and to keep the slant touching the oval instead of starting a new line beside it.

How do I practice a name that starts with A in cursive?

Type the name into the box, for example Amy or Aiden, one per line. Capital A ends on the baseline, so the rest of the name stays joined to it.