Cursive and civics homework could be in your child’s backpack in the near future if a pair of bills are signed into law. The Wisconsin Assembly passed the bills requiring public and private schools to teach cursive and incorporate a civics curriculum passed largely along partisan lines. Another bill banning anti-racism and anti-sexism studies and training was also passed, but Rep. Joel Kitchens says he knows that one will likely be vetoed by Governor Tony Evers. With all three bills, he hopes a conversation can at least be held with students, parents, and teachers.

One bill that was not included in last week’s legislative action was Assembly Bill 446, which would replace the current assessment strategy with a three-tiered approach for students in 4K through second grade. The hope is by assessing literacy more often, they could prevent more kids from falling behind in their reading skills. Kitchens believes that the bill will come up in the next session where he hopes to have more bipartisan support. Baileys Harbor resident Kari Baumann testified in favor of the bill in front of the Senate Committee on Education earlier this week.