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At What Age Should You Start Teaching Your Child Touch Typing?There is an amazing controversy about having the very young typist - those 7 and under - learn correct hand positioning on the keyboard. Those opposed feel the young person's hand are much too small, and the strain too great. So, they are allowed to hunt and peck at will. Soon they are doing very well at hunting and pecking, perhaps 18 wpm. Plenty fast enough to get by. Unfortunately, once they have taught themselves to type this way, they rarely will then learn touch typing, and excel up to 50, or 100 wpm. Once they have been trained in the hunt and peck system, they just don't want to re-learn. It is much like trying to teach grammar and diction to a teenager. It is a very difficult "sell." I learned touch typing at 12, by 16 I was doing 100 page papers. Why? Well, I never said I was NICE <G>. Can you imagine a piano teacher telling, a five year old student to just hunt and peck until they get older? See our One Handed Typing Child PackageChild Size KeyboardsThe very young one hand typist does have a much harder task. A normal keyboard is too big for two small hands. It is unreasonably big for one young hand. I strongly suggest a child size keyboard. see examples of small childsize kids keyboardsPersonally, I think the concept of finger placement and not peaking, needs to be taught in the first grade. But, a child size keyboard is needed so they CAN use the right placement. BTW, don't be fooled in thinking a SPACE SAVING tiny keyboard, is a child size keyboard. Take a ruler and measure from Q over to P. On a normal keyboard this is about 7 inches. If it is a child size keyboard, that measurement is anywhere from 10% to 30% less. From 5 .6 inches to 6 inches. Most of the SPACE SAVING keyboards are the same distance from Q to P as a normal keyboard. These can be great one handed typists, but not for a child one handed typist. Also, I was fooled into thinking the child's Winnie the Pooh keyboard was a child size keyboard. WRONG. What idiot made a Pooh Bear keyboard in an adult size???? So, take a ruler and measure from Q over to P. It must be 6 inches or less to be a childsize keyboard. Lap tops?There are very few laptops that can be used for a one handed typist. If you were using two-hands, the keyboard would center straight out from your belly button - the middle of your body. The screen would be right in back on that. So, you would have a straight line from your belly button, to through the center of the keyboard, to the center of the screen. HOWEVER, in ONE HAND TYPING the keyboard is offset to the side, depending on which hand the typist uses. If you use the right hand, it offsets to the right. If you use the left hand, it will offset to the left. You center 'HOME BASE,' on the keyboard, (HOME BASE is the four keys in the very center of all the letters - F G H J) just about straight out from your hip. To find just the right place for your keyboard, sit at your work area, and allow your arms to hang down. Keeping your elbow pressed lightly at your side, take your typing arm and lift just the lower arm up naturally. Keep the elbow at your waist. Your arm should not be reaching forward, left, or right. Ideally, it is also not reaching upwards, but coming straight out. Position the keyboard so the F G H J keys on the keyboard are directly under your hand. Lap tops are great because of the smaller keyboard. However, you must then move the entire device to the right, or left to center in front of the arm of your more able hand. This means the screen is no longer directly in front of your eyes. Unless the keyboard disconnects from the screen, a lap top is not a good alternative. A small keyboard is. Do not be confused by a space saving keyboard, and child size keyboard.
Laptops for One Handed Typists!Finally! There are laptops for one handed typists!See least expensive option at Amazon click link above
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