CREATE YOUR OWN LINED WORKSHEETS
This is a first. There are no other fonts anywhere that offer you these options. Use MS Word to create your own worksheets. It isn’t as hard as it might seem.
- To create a page of lines. Start a new document. Select the handwriting font you want to use and type in a page of lines choose the size lines you want (say 48pt), using either the ` or ~ or # keys. Choose a non-‐black font colour if you like. Don’t use the space bar or the return keys. (The lines you type may appear dotted or even invisible on the screen, this will depend on the point size of the lines, never the less they will print perfectly).
- On the Menubar go to Insert -‐> text box, then click and drag the cursor to make the text box the size you want. Select the same handwriting font and size as above, and begin typing your story. (At this stage you won’t be able to see the lines behind the text.)
- Next double click on text box frame, the Format Text Box will appear, under Colours & Lines -‐> Fill-‐ colour -‐> select No Fill, also under Colours & Lines -‐> Line-‐colour -‐> select No Line, and finally under Layout (or Arrange) -‐> select In Front of Text, click OK. (
- Now that you have created the lines and Text Box, type some text into the Text Box. Make sure you have selected the same font and point size as you used to create the lines. You may find that the lines and text don’t line up exactly. You can align them exactly by:
- For Windows: Click in the text box frame to make the frame visible, then click again on the text box frame (the text box frame will appear as small dots (not cross-‐hatching), you can now move the text box in small increments by holding down the cntrl key while at the same time pressing the ‘up’ and ‘down’ arrows.
- For Macs: Click in the text box frame to make the frame visible, then click again on the text box frame (the text box frame will appear as small dots (not cross-‐hatching), now you can move the text box in small increments by holding down the opt key and pressing the ‘up’ and ‘down’ arrows.
- To readjust the size of the text box to match the text, click in the text box, then click and hold on the text box frame resize points (small open squares) and extend or contract the text box so that it matches the lines.
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You don’t have to follow all the above steps every time you want to make new writing worksheets, use Save As (it’s next to Save). When you’ve created a document and the lines match up. Make a copy of your original by clicking Save As, give this new document a new name, then replace the old text with the text you want in this new document.
You can use your worksheet as a template to make other exercises in smaller or larger print. To change the point size, click in the Text Box, -‐> Edit -‐> Select All, change the point size of the lines, then do the same for the written text. Note the point size of the lines, and the text MUST be the same.