sheryl Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 Please recommend your best pick for a typing program. Do you use software typing program? If so, which one is heads above the rest and the best for my rising 6th grader with NO keyboard instruction and/or formal experience/practice. Thanks. Sheryl <>< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babysparkler Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 We have Typing Instructor Deluxe and love it. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanceXToo Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 My 9 y/o is using a free site online. It is working fine for her: http://webinstituteforteachers.org/~gammakeys/Lesson/Lesson1.htm We do one lesson per week but we repeat that lesson 2-3 times over the week for reinforcement before moving on to the next lesson the following week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 There are all sorts of programs. Pretty much, any will work. If you want free, this is how my mom (an occupational therapist) teaches children: abcdefg with the left hand hijklmnop with the right qrst with left uvwxyz mixed hands Practice one hand first, then add the second. Then practice both together. Then add the third section. then all 3 together, then all four. Then words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 We've used Mavis Beacon with great success, but I agree with the above poster that there are a lot of good options. They key for my kids was doing it every day (well, 5 days/week) for a few months, 10-20 minutes at a time. Both of my girls did it for two summers and were typing 40 wpm by the end of the second summer. They did it the summers they were 7 and 8 (older daughter) and 8 and 9 (younger), so I would think that a 6th grader would progress even faster. My younger daughter needs a refresher, thanks to bad habits she's picking up from her friends' e-mails (obviously, her friends didn't use Mavis Beacon to learn to type!), so she will do it again this summer. Terri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheryl Posted April 12, 2010 Author Share Posted April 12, 2010 Thanks for those.....any other great, easy to learn and use programs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheryl Posted April 12, 2010 Author Share Posted April 12, 2010 :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynn Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 We have Typing Instructor Deluxe and love it. :001_smile: This is what I used for my boys. Worked great for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cani e porci Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 We have Typing Instructor Deluxe and love it. :001_smile:One of my friends recommended Typing Instructor, but I see that there are two versions. Do you use the version for kids or the regular one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firefly Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 I loathe Sponge Bob, but a homeschooling friend recommended it so I tried it. (This was a couple years back now, when they were first learning to type). Wow, I can't deny it worked, and quickly! So, two thumbs up for Sponge Bob Typing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra in FL Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 I usually start mine at age 8-9 (for dd) and age 10 for the boys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
runamuk Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 I used the BBC's Dancing Mat typing program to introduce the keys to my kids (10 and 6). The 10 year old has been using Typing Web for the last several months. They're both free, which means they work just fine for us. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
babysparkler Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 One of my friends recommended Typing Instructor, but I see that there are two versions. Do you use the version for kids or the regular one? We use the regular one (not kids version). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedgehogs4 Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 we have a mac so we have typing instructor platinum, i believe, which is the one that was compatible with a mac. it is working very well so far! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SilverMoon Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 My kids learned to type with BBC - Schools - Dance Mat Typing - Home . Once they made it through the entire game they started typing up their final drafts for further practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
samba2nite Posted April 12, 2010 Share Posted April 12, 2010 I second or third the free dance mat typing program offered by the BBC. You can look it on by a search for bbc dancemat typing. It is funny I have played aorund with it myself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne in ABQ Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 One of my friends recommended Typing Instructor, but I see that there are two versions. Do you use the version for kids or the regular one? The kids' version is recommended for little kids, up to age 10. The adult version is suggested for ages 8 and up. We have both. My 6th grader hated the kid version, so I got him the adult version. He is progressing nicely with it. We had the Spongebob program and my kids didn't like it. The fingers are curved to the side in the visual model (shows which finger to use to strike keys). They found it difficult to follow the curve of the fingers. It was distracting and took too long. In Typing Instructor (both versions), the virtual fingers go straight up to the keyboard, making it easy to quickly figure out which finger to use. (I realize that in real life, our fingers curve to the side sometimes, but it's not easy for beginners to read the screen that way. Well, it's not easy for MY kids. YMMV) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted April 13, 2010 Share Posted April 13, 2010 We use Dance Mat Typing - it's online and free. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sheryl Posted April 13, 2010 Author Share Posted April 13, 2010 OK, thanks all...off to give these a try. I plan on started my dd on typing May/June when we are mostly finished with the current grade. Appreciate everyone's input. Sheryl <>< Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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