Playwrite is a typeface engine that allows the creation of primary school cursive fonts.
The latest edition of the national curriculum, published in 2014, requires that at the end of fourth grade, students must “write all the letters, write clearly and understandably”. Handwriting teaching in Iceland happens during grades 1–3 (6–9 years old), and books by the MMS adhere to a progressive system, based on simplified modern italic styles. According to this system, students should first be introduced to the lowercase letters of Grunnskrift, or the initial model. These are simplified and unconnected letters, slightly slanted, and with exit strokes. This should be followed by uppercase letters of the same model. Finally, in the third grade (8–9 years old), students learn Tengiskrift, or joined letters.
This slanted modern cursive handwriting is crafted for high-speed writing and features print-style uppercase letters, with 'M' notably having splain legs. The lowercase letters are inspired by early Italic calligraphies, including the the chancery style. Letters that end with a descender do not connect to the subsequent character, making this a semi-connected model. Both 'b' and 'p' feature closed bowls, while 'z' and 'r' are designed with an italic structure, stressing the script’s aesthetic and functional attributes.
