Sarah CB Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 It was more like where I dropped the ball in homeschooling that made her a freak... Dd (16 now) types with only two fingers. And she can type 90 words per minute. It's not pretty to watch - in fact I think she looks like an alien. I take total resonsibility. I didn't make her complete a typing program and I gave her lots of access to computers. She ignored the Mavis Beacon CD and decided she could figure things out herself. Do your kids have freaky abilities as a result of your homeschooling successes or failures? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoVanGogh Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Dd (16 now) types with only two fingers. And she can type 90 words per minute.DH is a software engineer. He is incredible to watch type, as he has perfect form and amazing speed. But he says most of his co-workers still 'hunt and peck' with two fingers, even after years of heavy/daily typing. So I would say your daughter is ahead of some. ;) (It is funny how many jobs really do require a heavy amount of typing!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 True for my dd, too. I tried to teach her to touch type, but she learned the other way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen in NS Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Dd (16 now) types with only two fingers. And she can type 90 words per minute. Accurately?? I can't imagine how! I type "properly," (meaning, finger placement) and I can't do anywhere near 90 wpm with anything approaching accurately. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
higginszoo Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Nah, mine were freaks before they were even school-aged. Homeschooling hasn't seemed to have any effect on their freakiness one way or the other. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grover Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I'd like to see 90 WPM two finger typing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Freakish.... Hmmm. My kids? well, of course. My older dd got interested in ancient writing when we studied ancients in history. She knows Elder Futhark and explains it to unsuspecting strangers that ask what she's learning in school. My older seems less freakish now that he's an adult, but he can typically found on a train in Tokyo reading a tome by Kissinger just for fun. I have no doubt that they'd be freakish if they hadn't been homeschooled, but homeschooling certainly gave them a lot more time to work on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cajunrose Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 My dad types with his two middle fingers..hunt and peck method. People rag him about it all the time. His response? "Most people type with 10 fingers, I type with just 2" as he holds his two fingers (his middle fingers) up at the person. It shuts them up..lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 It was more like where I dropped the ball in homeschooling that made her a freak... Dd (16 now) types with only two fingers. And she can type 90 words per minute. It's not pretty to watch - in fact I think she looks like an alien. I take total resonsibility. I didn't make her complete a typing program and I gave her lots of access to computers. She ignored the Mavis Beacon CD and decided she could figure things out herself. Do your kids have freaky abilities as a result of your homeschooling successes or failures? True confession: Sometimes I think they are trying to break a record for how many days they can stay in their pjs, but I don't think that's what you mean. I've never timed my 17yodd, but she sounds much like your dd. She took keyboarding in first grade before we withdrew to hs. She used a typing instruction for younger/mid elementary students, and I made her take a Mavis Beacon course as a middle schooler. She still uses two fingers and can type more quickly and as accurately as I do. I took typing and office classes from 7th grade on and was a legal secretary in my prior life. At least I know she can always fall back on her typing, :D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorganClassicalPrep Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Last night while I was watching Jeopardy with my mom, DD kept bugging me asking to do school. (Yes, we've been staying up late and sleeping in while I'm not in classes, which means school late!) "Mommy, can we do school? Is it time to do school? How much time left until we do my schoolwork?" My mom said "I don't think I've ever known a child to WANT to do schoolwork so much" I said... "Well, you've never known a child that isn't FORCED into a classroom for 8 hours a day doing busywork and calling it learning" :lol: Score one for homeschooling! (Mom already supports me in homeschooling, and has helped financially so I'm able to do so, but she's still not 100% convinced.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PentecostalMom Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I'd like to see 90 WPM two finger typing! :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PentecostalMom Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I have no doubt that they'd be freakish if they hadn't been homeschooled, but homeschooling certainly gave them a lot more time to work on it. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iucounu Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I'd like to see 90 WPM two finger typing! :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caraway Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I have no doubt that they'd be freakish if they hadn't been homeschooled, but homeschooling certainly gave them a lot more time to work on it. :smilielol5: This is possibly my favorite quote about homeschooling ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GWOB Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 My poor kids were destined to be freaks. They have two weird parents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lang Syne Boardie Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I would also really love to see a video of that. Two fingers, 90 wpm? Really? I touch-type 65wpm now, but I could consistently and accurately do 80 when I was young. I'm not saying nobody could type faster than my record, of course, but I can't imagine a person doing it without a few more fingers than two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 My poor kids were destined to be freaks. They have two weird parents. :iagree: Right now about the extent of my kids' abilities is just to whine and fight and bicker for the longest period of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I would also really love to see a video of that. Two fingers, 90 wpm? Really? I touch-type 65wpm now, but I could consistently and accurately do 80 when I was young. I'm not saying nobody could type faster than my record, of course, but I can't imagine a person doing it without a few more fingers than two. I touch-typed 106wpm way back when I was a Legal Secretary. I even got speedy at typing out numbers because of having to type Case No. on everything. It was when Windows and mouse-use came into the picture that I got much slower. I hated Windows at first because you had to keep stopping to mouse. (Now I really sound old...):auto: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lang Syne Boardie Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I touch-typed 106wpm way back when I was a Legal Secretary. I even got speedy at typing out numbers because of having to type Case No. on everything. It was when Windows and mouse-use came into the picture that I got much slower. I hated Windows at first because you had to keep stopping to mouse. (Now I really sound old...):auto: Naw, I'm old, too. I did data entry on a manual typewriter. Then I did medical transcription work on an electric typewriter. There were things to learn when we all switched to computers, that's for sure. 106wpm. I could only dream. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-rap Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Well I don't know if it's freakish, but my daughter can bake, boil, or cook an entire meal from basically nothing. Lunch time would come along and as usual I'd still be in the midst of a project with one of the kids -- having forgotten to go to the grocery store as well -- so this child took the bull by the horns and began creating something out of nearly nothing, for everyone! It's a great skill to have and she continues it to this day, almost every day. She even does the grocery shopping now. :) Today she made gluten-free coconut pancakes with sauteed zucchini and nitrate-free sausage for lunch. (Now that she does the shopping, we have a few more ingredients on-hand.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiana Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I touch-typed 106wpm way back when I was a Legal Secretary. I even got speedy at typing out numbers because of having to type Case No. on everything. It was when Windows and mouse-use came into the picture that I got much slower. I hated Windows at first because you had to keep stopping to mouse. (Now I really sound old...):auto: Hah. I still use all of the keyboard shortcuts that I possibly can for anything at all, including resizing windows, switching windows, etc. BTW, I don't use the correct typing method at all. I don't even use consistent fingers on the keys -- they move around depending on what's most efficient. And yet my best score is 129 wpm with 99% accuracy. (The lady at the temp service was astonished when I scored that :D) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MtnTeaching Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Some people have told me that they are not sure exactly what ds looks like. Since about 3rd grade, the open book with a body, arms, and legs coming toward you has been my ds. He reads in the car, walking down the street, during meals, during tv programs, in the bathroom, in the middle of the night :glare:, during math :glare:, pretty much everywhere and anywhere. When the other boys his age (now 9th) are all texting on their I-phones, ds has his head in a book. (He is currently making his way through the Cornwell "Richard Sharpe" series chronologically.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 My poor kids were destined to be freaks. They have two weird parents. :iagree: Yes, here too. *sigh* ds does math in his head better than on paper. We're working on that one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unicorn. Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 That doesn't make her a freak. It's the new normal. Those of us that type the old fashioned way (using correct placement and ten digits) are the freaks! It was more like where I dropped the ball in homeschooling that made her a freak... Dd (16 now) types with only two fingers. And she can type 90 words per minute. It's not pretty to watch - in fact I think she looks like an alien. I take total resonsibility. I didn't make her complete a typing program and I gave her lots of access to computers. She ignored the Mavis Beacon CD and decided she could figure things out herself. Do your kids have freaky abilities as a result of your homeschooling successes or failures? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 :iagree: Right now about the extent of my kids' abilities is just to whine and fight and bicker for the longest period of time. That's what my boys are specializing in at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 :iagree: Yes, here too. *sigh* ds does math in his head better than on paper. We're working on that one. I remember being told again and again in school to "show all your work!". A friend of mine was showing me her son's math book the other day. He's doing Singapore 4B and there are some pretty tough word problems - he just writes down the answer. She can't figure out how he gets it but he's doing great :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 Some people have told me that they are not sure exactly what ds looks like. Since about 3rd grade, the open book with a body, arms, and legs coming toward you has been my ds. He reads in the car, walking down the street, during meals, during tv programs, in the bathroom, in the middle of the night :glare:, during math :glare:, pretty much everywhere and anywhere. When the other boys his age (now 9th) are all texting on their I-phones, ds has his head in a book. (He is currently making his way through the Cornwell "Richard Sharpe" series chronologically.) This is the kind of freakish behavior that I love. :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 FWIW, that is how my husband types (and he works for a software company). Well, I'll stop harping on her. I did ease back on my nagging when she demonstrated her "ability" for me. She obviously types fast and accurately although I find it hard to watch... After the incredulity over the 90 wpm I think I'm going to have her do the typing test again. She did an online typing test on her own after I suggested that typing with all of her fingers would certainly be faster. Maybe she made up the number to get me off her back for good - though I honestly can't imagine her lying about it - or maybe it wasn't an accurate test she was using. Now I want to watch her do a timed test :D She's finishing her last week at public school and will be home with me again starting next week so perhaps that will be my first homeschool assignment for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halftime Hope Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Not something I'm proud of *at all* but my kid with the 10-key style cell phone can text faster than kids with a qwerty cellphone keyboard. He won a contest in the youth group. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tricia Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Nah, mine were freaks before they were even school-aged. Homeschooling hasn't seemed to have any effect on their freakiness one way or the other. ;) :lol::lol::lol:Here too:lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 I wasn't homeschooled, but I type without using the homerow keys. However, I can type quite fast and without looking at the keys at all. It has baffled my husband for years! LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyfaithe Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Nah, mine were freaks before they were even school-aged. Homeschooling hasn't seemed to have any effect on their freakiness one way or the other. ;) Yeah, mine too. Total freaks:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unsinkable Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 My oldest still takes class notes in Evish runes... It makes it so no one can ever borrow said notes--she's found it handy over the years. I was always happy to share my class notes with anyone who wanted or needed them. I knew I took thorough, readable notes and that it was a skill not everyone had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
radiobrain Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 My children were destined to be oddballs. Homeschooling has only enhanced their ability to be as odd as they want, and embrace their own brand of weird w/o the soul-crushing effects of endless hours with "peers." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Not something I'm proud of *at all* but my kid with the 10-key style cell phone can text faster than kids with a qwerty cellphone keyboard. He won a contest in the youth group. :glare: Okay, I find this hilarious!! That is one of those things that I might only share with some of the grandparents. :lol: My oldest still takes class notes in Evish runes... It makes it so no one can ever borrow said notes--she's found it handy over the years. Margaret, I love this too. In many ways, my dd reminds me of yours (from other posts). Last year, she took many of her biology notes in Korean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nukeswife Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 My kids are also part of the group that were destined to be weird, just do to the fact that they have two nerds/geeks for parents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarah CB Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 My oldest still takes class notes in Evish runes... It makes it so no one can ever borrow said notes--she's found it handy over the years. I think you win. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 My oldest still takes class notes in Evish runes... It makes it so no one can ever borrow said notes--she's found it handy over the years. I used to write notes to my now DH in Elvish. Never took class notes in it, though :). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
********* Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Here we use the word 'dorks' instead of freaks. Lovingly, of course. :D My boys are very dorky. But reading this thread, I see we're in good company. In fact, many of the homeschool kids we know are 'quirky' compared to many of the public schooled kids we know. But, in a good way, if that makes sense. I embrace the weirdness. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 My dh took typing class in high school and still types with two fingers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aggie Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 One of my dds can play the piano upside down and backwards. She will lie on the piano bench on her back and play with her pinky fingers in middle C position, but her right hand plays the left part and her left hand plays the right part. Freak.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mothersweets Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Well I don't know if it's freakish, but my daughter can bake, boil, or cook an entire meal from basically nothing. Lunch time would come along and as usual I'd still be in the midst of a project with one of the kids -- having forgotten to go to the grocery store as well -- so this child took the bull by the horns and began creating something out of nearly nothing, for everyone! It's a great skill to have and she continues it to this day, almost every day. She even does the grocery shopping now. :) Today she made gluten-free coconut pancakes with sauteed zucchini and nitrate-free sausage for lunch. (Now that she does the shopping, we have a few more ingredients on-hand.) That isn't freakish - it's freakin' awesome!! Being able to cook is one of the most useful skills a person can have. Way to go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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