Our kids are part of a new kind of generation, born with computers everywhere and information ready to be had. What about when kids need to share that information? One of the most effective ways to share information is to type it out. Whether for a school assignment or to share an idea online, our keyboards are right, literally, at our fingertips to help us get our ideas written.
So how do kids learn to type?
How Can I Improve My Child’s Typing Skills
Some kids will learn in school but if they don’t, or if you want to give them more practice, you can teach them on your own. Let’s look at some ways to get you started.
Touch typing, also known is blind typing, is typing without looking at the keys, using muscle memory and practice to hit the keys accurately. Touch typing isn’t the only way to use a keyboard to type, but it is one of the fastest and likely the way you type (unless you hunt and peck).
Speed, in touch typing, comes from practice. To begin, help your child put their hands on the right keys. The starting position for the left hand is with your fingers on ASDF, and your right hand is on keys JKL;, with your thumb on the space bar. When they are ready, teach them where shift is and how to alternate their shift depending on which side of the keyboard the letter they want to uppercase is.
There are plenty of free, online typing courses for you to consider. A current favorite of mine is Dance Mat Typing. It teaches kids where to place their fingers and gives them practice sentences. Even ten minutes of typing a day can help kids learn the basics.
How to Learn to Type Faster
Now that they know the basics, how do you help your kids with learning to type faster?
Typing exercises and practices are a great resource, but a fun, surprising resource are typing games. There are hundreds of different typing games with different emphases on typing. Typing.com has found that they are a great way to motivate kids to keep going with typing lessons and keep them engaged.
Games or no games, the best trick to improve typing speed is practice. Teach them not to look at their hands and to retype practice lines. Another benefit is to make sure they are practicing good typing posture. Feet flat on the floor and straight backed.
So what is a good typing speed for a beginner? The recommended average for kids ages 6-11 is 15 words per minute, but if your kids want to see how fast they can type, they can take a typing test. You should too. It’s fun and challenging. Remember, speed will come later but accuracy is more important. Most typing tests also challenge your accuracy at the same time. With this skill, kids will be ready for school and the world beyond.
Helping your kids in this ever evolving tech world is critical and Troomi wants to help. They’ve designed their kidsafe smartphones to open more features to match your kids current level. Check out Troomi for a plan right for your kid.