Per usual, participants in my training on Teaching Your Students Technology 101 did a lot of great networking, sharing resources and insights that have really helped them in their work. Here are their tips to teach touch typing:
- Get a customized keyboard or paint/sticker a keyboard to coordinate colors with the correct finger placement.
- Point out to students that most keyboards have a raised bar on the letters “f” and “j” where your index finger should sit on the home row.
More links to computer literacy resources:
- Computer Literacy Instructional Resources from Minnesota Literacy Council
- Test the strength of your passwords with The Password Meter
- GCF Learn Free for Microsoft Office Applications and more
- Resources for Teaching Adults from Literacy Works
And I’ll leave you with a random, interesting bit of information: Did you know that the QWERTY keyboard in most common use may actually be designed to SLOW DOWN typing? The layout was created for typewriters and the legend goes that the cumbersome letter placement is meant to prevent the machine from jamming from typing too fast. Alternative keyboard layouts (like the Dvorak Simplified Keyboard) are available, but they are not as widely taught or commercially used.
What are your tips, links, or random bits of info to share on teaching touch typing and other basic computer literacy skills?
You must log in to post a comment.