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Preview on US Letter in the Minimal style. The PDF uses exactly the same drawing.

Basic Paper

School Handwriting Paper from Six Countries

The handwriting rulings children learn with in European schools, ready to print: German Lineatur 0 to 3, Spanish pauta Montessori and cuadrovía, French lignage dys, Russian kosaya lineyka, Polish three-line paper and Dutch writing lines.

Customize This Template Download a free PDF

What you can customize

  • Ruling
  • Colours
  • Margin line
  • Extra gap between rows

Works well in

All page sizes, from Passport to A4

Try it in another style

Start from a preset

  • German Lineatur 1, US Letter Four lines 5 mm apart with a shaded middle band, for first-year writers. Open in the maker →
  • Spanish pauta Montessori 3.5 mm, A4 Four evenly spaced lines 3.5 mm apart. Open in the maker →
  • French lignage dys 3 mm, A4 Sky, grass, earth and fire lines in the four Bicêtre colours. Open in the maker →
  • Russian kosaya lineyka, A5 booklet Working lines with 65° slant guides, folded into a small exercise book. Open in the maker →
  • Dutch writing lines 9-6-9, A4 Large ascender, x-height and descender zones for beginners. Open in the maker →

One template, six school systems

Each country teaches handwriting on its own ruling, and parents abroad often cannot find the right paper. This template draws them all from the same controls:

  • Germany: Lineatur 0 to 2 with four lines and a shaded middle band (6, 5 and 4 mm), Lineatur 3 with only the 3.5 mm band.
  • Spain: pauta Montessori with four equal lines, and cuadrovía, a fine 3 mm grid with a writing row every three squares.
  • France: lignage dys, with sky blue, grass green, earth brown and fire red lines.
  • Russia: kosaya lineyka, working lines crossed by slant guides at 65°.
  • Poland: zeszyt w trzy linie, lines every 5 mm in a thin, thick, thick pattern.
  • Netherlands: schrijflijnen coded by their zones, such as 9-6-9.

Add a red Margin line if the school asks for one, and switch Colours off for a plain grey version.

Printing it like an exercise book

  1. For loose sheets, use an A4 or Letter preset and Download PDF → Reading order.
  2. For a notebook, choose A5 and Print-ready booklet, print double-sided on the short edge, fold and staple.
  3. Always print at 100% (Actual size), then measure one row with a ruler. If it is off, see the printer calibration guide.

Free sample PDFs

Print at 100% (actual size). Made with the same engine as the maker, so the spacing is exact.

  • School Handwriting Paper, US Letter (1 page) PDF ↓
  • School Handwriting Paper, A4 (1 page) PDF ↓

Frequently asked questions

Which rulings are included?

Germany: Lineatur 0, 1, 2 and 3. Spain: pauta Montessori 3.5 and 5 mm and cuadrovía 3 mm. France: lignage dys 3 and 5 mm. Russia: kosaya lineyka and the narrow chastaya kosaya. Poland: three-line paper (5 mm). Netherlands: writing lines 9-6-9, 7.5-5-7.5 and 6-4-6. Pick one under Ruling.

Are the line distances exact?

The distances within a writing row follow published specifications: DIN 16552-1 as described by code-knacker.de and Brunnen, the pauta Montessori by ilerna.es, the lignage dys colours by dysclick.fr, ГОСТ 12063-89 and ГОСТ 204-50, Polish Wikipedia’s article on exercise books, and the Dutch De Rolf and Heutink codes. The gap between rows differs from one publisher to the next, so use Extra gap between rows (−4 to 10 mm) to match your school’s exercise book. These sheets are not endorsed by any school authority.

Can I print the pages without colour?

Yes. Turn off Colours and the shaded bands and coloured lines print in grey, which suits black-and-white printers and photocopies.

My child’s school uses US handwriting paper. Is that here too?

The dotted-midline paper used in US schools is the separate Handwriting template, with kindergarten and first-grade versions.

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