Keyboarding is an important skill for children and adults alike. It is an essential form of communication and perhaps surprisingly, requires many of the same underlying components as handwriting- – accuracy and speed. Both skills require a strong sense of where the arm and body is in space. While handwriting requires the muscles to learn 26 letter formations each for upper case and lower case letters, typing requires the child to establish accurate finger position and placement that becomes so automatic that it is executed without looking.

When learning to type, it is a good idea to keep the practice interesting and varied by incorporating keyboarding games into the repertoire of practice. Similar to handwriting practice, it is best to practice for short periods with a high degree of accuracy on a consistent, regular basis, preferably daily.

Some of the advantages to keyboarding exercises and games are that practice makes perfect-or at least improves performance. Continued practice will increase speed, efficiency, and accuracy of typing. Block practice has been shown to provide the foundation for learning a new motor skill. Keyboarding games reinforce learning so typing becomes incorporated into real-life situations. Programs for keyboarding games and exercises allow you to start with homerow keys (asdf jkl;), or increase the challenge by adding other keys to the homerow keys. Many of the games will reinforce a left-to-right pattern, which is essential for good handwriting.

It is important to make sure that the computer workstation is at an appropriate, comfortable height for your child and that he is sitting in a chair that offers adequate back support (See our blog from September 15, 2008, entitled “My Back is Breaking & Other Perils of Modern Life” for more tips on setting up an ergonomically correct workstation). Encourage your child to take frequent rest breaks, every 20 minutes, to stand up and stretch to avoid eye strain and muscle fatigue.

Tips for improving keyboarding:

1.     Place a keyboard skin (available on amazon.com) over the keyboard to avoid peeking so that your child learns the placement of keys, avoiding the “hunt and peck” method

2.     Encourage your child to say each letter aloud as he types it to facilitate multisensory learning, learning that occurs through more than one of our senses, which is known to be more effective and long-lasting

3.     Use mental imagery, a powerful learning tool, to imagine the keyboard in front of you and type with eyes closed.

The following is a list of websites that offer free online typing exercises and games for kids. Variety and motivation are key.

1.     www.powertyping.com

2.     www.freetypinggame.net

3.     Dance mat typing:www.bc.co.uk/schools/typing/

4.     www.learning2type.com

5.     www.learninggamesforkids.com

6.     www.hubpages.com

7.     www.freeonlinetypinggames.com

8.     www.computerlabkids.com

9.     www.gamequarium.net

The following is a list of some of the favorite, “tried and tested” games for keyboarding practice from the websites listed above:

1.     Space Invaders

2.     Save the Sailboat Race

3.     The Frogs are off Their Diet

4.     Outerspace Fleet Commander

5.     Martian City Defender

6.     Meteor Typing Blast

7.     Cup Stacking Typing

8.     AlphaAttack

9.     Typing Bubbles

Stay tuned for next week’s blog as we discuss why it is still essential to write well in the 21^st century.

Blog written by: Aviva Goldwasser, MS, OTR

Chaye Lamm-Warburg, MA, OTR, Director POTS