Romantic love is a complex emotion thought to have aboriginal roots in human evolution, and associated with the demand to pair-bond in stable relationships. Through songs, poems, diaries, journals, cards and artwork, love is historic for its ability to send both lover and beloved into the enthralment of passion, whether the feelings are lasting or as imperceptible as dear letters on the sand.

Merely the practice of sending keepsake love letters began around the end of the 18th century. In 1913, Hallmark produced the first commercial Valentine'south Day cards.

Valentine's Day is now entrenched as a day for sending and receiving messages of love to our partners, parents, children and close friends. Evolving enquiry in the neurosciences and psychology underscores the value and benefit of these letters, especially if they are handwritten, for sender and receiver alike.

The sender may, withal, under-estimate the value of these handmade messages. We need to be reminded of the important office they play equally Valentine's Twenty-four hours approaches – not only to heighten relationships among people of all ages, but to help children become empowered and inspired through language, literacy and the ability of the pen beyond time and space.

Joy of giving

Importantly, the happiness outcomes of expressing gratitude accrue to those who write by manus. Writing by mitt creates neurocircuitry to the encephalon that typing does non. The hand-brain complex lays down neuro-pathways when writing messages to those nosotros intendance for, creating meaning and memory, and triggering the release of dopamine in the brain through the neurotransmission of the feel-practiced sensation of writing words of love and gratitude.

Writing cards, notes and love letters carve these pathways more deeply, over fourth dimension, creating embodied knowledge and contributing incrementally to a sense of well-beingness and happiness. Psychology research fourth dimension and again underscores the importance of and the connections between happiness, gratitude, an overall sense of well-existence and strong relationships with others. Modernistic technology can do the paw-writing for yous and instantly send out customised messages on your behalf. Remember, however, that while the receiver might bask the message, y'all take cheated only yourself by non engaging the hand-brain complex that lies at the heart of the beneficial furnishings of handwriting. Emails don't count, either.

Fluency of paw

What educators phone call fluency of hand – competency in fluent writing – is realised with connected script or cursive handwriting. Cursive needs to be taught explicitly and directly, starting at a immature age, with enough of opportunities for mindful practice and purposeful production.

The brain can merely juggle and then many competing demands in working memory. Automatising handwriting offloads the cognitive demands of handwriting to long-term retention. In plough, this unleashes the capacity for amalgam the letters we desire to convey. An apt analogy for the importance of developing fluency of mitt can exist plant in any of the performing arts such every bit water ice dancing.

Automaticity and fluidity of movement and technique in the perfection of execution allowed gold-medal Olympians Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir to give themselves over to the interpretation, musicality and artistic storytelling that touches, connects and enraptures audiences.

Play

All are drawn into the passion, romance and raw emotion of their exquisite telling of Christian and Satine's impossible dear destined to terminate in tragedy as information technology unfolds to a medley from Moulin Rouge.

Like the foundational skills of skating and dance motility, cursive hand is not an end in itself, but rather a way of giving children tools of cocky expression, agency, connection and identity construction.

Their letters of love and friendship are reflections of the particular life experiences they draw on, and the item words they own and cull in their quest to convey something of themselves to a listening world beyond themselves. Even immature kids have the ability to do this.

Handmade valentines

Valentine'south Day can be one of many opportunities for children of all ages to go more securely engaged – more than often – in literacy through authentic everyday communication. Writing cards and messages is motivating and fosters a sense of relationship, connexion and well-being through literacy.

To set up for Valentine's Day, parents could take the opportunity to write messages or cards to family unit members or close friends. Older children can likewise be encouraged to accept this moment to transport a menu to family members. Receiving mail is always a happy occasion for grandparents.

For younger children, crafting Valentine'southward Solar day cards develops an array of fine motor manipulative and literacy skills that will stand up them in proficient stead. Folding paper, scissor piece of work, cartoon and colouring and using glue sticks and glitters in preparation for writing a heartfelt message give little fingers a expert work out.

Children will likewise develop concept information for literacy, numeracy and mathematics: an unfolded center illustrates the idea of symmetry and is used every bit a symbol for dearest.

Legacy writing

We ain our words and our thoughts in a most profound sense. When committed to newspaper, our words and thoughts survive our existence, leaving unique written footprints of our having been here. They too survive our efforts to get out backside the best of who nosotros are for others – and thus, they contribute to the pool of well-being for everyone including, importantly, ourselves.

For our loved ones including, and peradventure particularly, our children, written notes and letters in legacy formats are tangible reminders of deep connexion that tin can be revisited anytime the soul hungers for the nourishing sustenance of a loving bulletin.

Stories of challenge, adventure, love, hope or faith reach across fourth dimension, space, language and civilisation and can continue to shape who nosotros are. We lose something of ourselves if we forget these stories.

The ability of the pen, the souvenir of language and the permanency of the written word, and the desire to commit thought to paper ensures we exercise non lose sight of the centrality and certainty of dear in our lives and the joys of knowing what it means to love and be loved.

Hetty Roessingh, Professor, Werklund School of Teaching, University of Calgary.

This article first appeared on The Conversation.