Whereas once third grade was necessarily given over to the tedium of copying curls and loops, now it seems kids aren't learning cursive, and when they are, they won't use it. "It's a bit like going for a root canal for them," says one teacher. Apparently only 15% of students wrote their SAT essays in script, opting instead for block print. Most experts blame the "digital age" for this disinclination to write; while people have long known how to type, now there's apparently very little call for handwriting at all. "Unless you use it, you lose it," says another teacher.

What's odd about this is...once you learn cursive, isn't it easier and faster than printing? To say nothing of the purely sensuous pleasure of gliding a good pen, uninterrupted, across a page. And is the concept of "handwriting" — revealer of character, neuroses, criminal identity — a thing of the past? For generations of kids, handwriting conformed to the stringent dictates of the Palmer Method, a school of handwriting instruction that resulted in the distinctive, homogenous spidery penmanship we associate with the 19th and early 20th centuries. The abandonment of this method may have been regarded as a small triumph for individuality, but it's ironic that kids are now voluntarily opting for a more uniform sort of writing again.

Incidentally, I'm a sucker for bad penmanship. I've always loved the vulnerability of a little boy scrawl; apparently this, in itself, now dates me — and widens the holding pen for my "type" dramatically. That's a small casualty though; the decline of penmanship provokes in me a serious strain of old-womanish regret for lost arts, even as it's sort of awesome to actually be on the tail end of such a dying art! I didn't know we possessed any! Because writing was something that, unlike long division and kickball, was actually a "grown up" life skill, plus a small measure of artistry brought to even the most quotidian every day. My regret is not for something vague and societal and regimented; rather, it's the loss of a small satisfaction and a very real pleasure. Kids today don't know what they're missing...even if I'll apparently be crushing on all of them.

Cursive Writing A Dying Art [UPI]

Part of the "Cosmo Quiz"

The handwriting is extraordinarily clear, rhythmic, meticulous, logical, and open. She may be somewhat secretive about private matters (as signaled by loops on the right side of "o" formations).

The big, plump loops on the "y" formations indicate an imagination that is very creative and because most of the loops finish above the (imaginary) baseline, there is evidence that she has the power to bring her dreams to fruition.

She is not a fast thinker (the rounded "m" and "n" formations indicate a mostly methodical mind), but she makes up for the relative slowness of process with a good and trusted intuition (signaled by the breaks between letters) that accelerates her ability to draw decisions from strings of facts.

The writer pays close attention to details and is well organized, even though she might complain that she is not. The rounded "i" dots indicate that she stands by what she believes in and isn't easily swayed.

Although she says she over-analyzes, there is scant evidence in her handwriting that she probes and weighs and digs too much.

Her "f" formations have what we call tie strokes (they look like a tied shoelace) that signal a person who will keep at it, and at it, and at it until she gets it.

Her overall slant is straight up and down, the sign of a person who seldom is swept away by impulse and thinks before she acts.

The tops of certain "p" formations are higher than the round part of the "p" (as in shopping). This can signal a person who might, on occasion, be called argumentative, perhaps in a defensive way. If she argues it may sometimes be with facts, at other times with her imagination.

She underscores her first name, which is her famous one, and this is also a sign of self reliance. She can and will do things on her own.

The writer expresses herself fluidly on many levels regardless of the education, class or culture of others. The open "e" loops indicate a mind that is not limited or closed by preconceptions. She allows new ideas in. She also has the capacity to listen as well as to talk, a rare commodity.

There are hooks at the start of certain words (like card) that indicates a person who wants to have more than she does now, perhaps material things, perhaps power or knowledge.

In some words (like card) there are capital letters in the midst of a word; these are signs of a person who wishes to stand out and to be different.

All in all, the clarity and elegance are outstanding.

In times when security is tight and good information minimal, a team of crack experts can often divine truth from the tiniest clues. The Cold War had Kremlinologists, US Weekly has Dr. Marc Siegel, M.D., and Jezebel has Sheila Kurtz, MGA. She is president of a firm called Graphology, and she can read a LOT between the Paris Hilton's "slow-witted, methodical" lines.

THIS IS the purported handwriting of Paris Hilton, and it indicates an immature and almost introverted child with a slow-witted, methodical mind (see the round-topped m's and n's, just like they taught her in grammar school).

Intuition is a way of coming to a conclusion by leaping over the stepping stones of logic, and this process accelerates the speed of thinking. Intuition is shown in handwriting by spaces between letters within words.

Were it not for her intuition, which she may trust, but probably isn't trustworthy, the writer might take so long to come to reasonable conclusions that some would regard her as semi-handicapped.

To a graphologist, the Paris Hilton writing looks like somebody caught in pre-rebellious, pre-pubescent years while most children are under the sway of teachers and parents.

The "y" down-strokes are straight without any loops, a signal that she is basically a rather shy loner, even though she may force herself to come across as friendly and personable. There is little sign of an imagination.

She is very efficient with small details (closely dotted i's). However, in order to stave off confusion, she must take on and finish one thought process at a time and then move on. With too many irons in the fire, she will try but fail to do many of them acceptably well.

Her signature is cutesy-showy, which is how she wants the world to see her. She consciously writes little hearts as dots over the i's, a typical childish gesture by people who wish to call attention to themselves, to be in the spotlight.

When you look at the rest of her writing it bears no resemblance to her signature. (Signatures are like logotypes; they are created to portray a particular picture of personality to the world. There is a marked resemblance between her writing and that of Michael Jackson, whose signature is sophisticated but whose text writing is also simple-minded and pre-pubescent.

Her goals are set high (the t-stems are crossed near the top), yet there is little indication of strength or follow-through behind them.

The open "e" loops are an indication of a mind unclogged with preconceptions. Ordinarily that is a useful trait, but in this writer's case, there may be a lack of meaningful perceptions altogether.

Rarely do we see an independent adult write with such diminished capacity of comprehension. This writer, it seems, may need competent adult guidance almost all the time. Those who pretend she is competent are probably taking advantage of her.

Sheila Kurtz, President, Graphology Consulting