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June 23, 2015 1:19 PM Subscribe
What is your favorite game/program/tool to teach an elementary age child to type?
My son has issues with written work, and through school OT he has been starting to pick up keyboarding (using the 'Keyboarding without Tears' program), but the school year has now ended.
I would like to have him practice keyboarding at home for about ten minutes a day throughout summer vacation. This would need to be a structured teaching tool, not just "oh, let him type" (for a variety of reasons).
His OT loaned us a copy of the KWT key, but we can't get it to work and she is not currently reachable to resolve.
My (slight) preference would be for something we can download and run on his PC vs. something that is web based, for technical reasons I won't get into here (basically, his PC is a hand me down and pretty creaky). (Windows PC with keyboard - he needs to learn to type on a real keyboard, so nothing tablet based.)
Amazon reviews seem to recommend Typing Instructor for Kids Platinum 5, but if there are other programs you've used with success, I'd love your recommendations.
About him: He's 9; he is very goal driven; he is not neurotypical; his handwriting issues are part of larger executive functioning issues. Otherwise a typical smart 9 year old - Minecraft, Pokemon, PvZ, that sort of thing.
My son has issues with written work, and through school OT he has been starting to pick up keyboarding (using the 'Keyboarding without Tears' program), but the school year has now ended.
I would like to have him practice keyboarding at home for about ten minutes a day throughout summer vacation. This would need to be a structured teaching tool, not just "oh, let him type" (for a variety of reasons).
His OT loaned us a copy of the KWT key, but we can't get it to work and she is not currently reachable to resolve.
My (slight) preference would be for something we can download and run on his PC vs. something that is web based, for technical reasons I won't get into here (basically, his PC is a hand me down and pretty creaky). (Windows PC with keyboard - he needs to learn to type on a real keyboard, so nothing tablet based.)
Amazon reviews seem to recommend Typing Instructor for Kids Platinum 5, but if there are other programs you've used with success, I'd love your recommendations.
About him: He's 9; he is very goal driven; he is not neurotypical; his handwriting issues are part of larger executive functioning issues. Otherwise a typical smart 9 year old - Minecraft, Pokemon, PvZ, that sort of thing.
One of my sons really, really liked Mario Teaches Typing when we were homeschooling. It appears to be available at Abandonia.
I had him do that for about 10 minutes a day, a few days a week until he could type at about 35/wpm. Then he was allowed to quit doing typing practice.
But, to be honest, one of the best things that helped him was letting him play online games with a live chat feature. By the sound of it, he could type at about 80wpm (in that it sounded like his father typing) when he was doing that, in spite of still typing mostly with his two index fingers (he has serious hand issues and it actually hurts his hands to try to type the "proper" way). That was advice I got on a homeschooling list and it was excellent advice.
posted by Michele in California at 1:43 PM on June 23, 2015
I had him do that for about 10 minutes a day, a few days a week until he could type at about 35/wpm. Then he was allowed to quit doing typing practice.
But, to be honest, one of the best things that helped him was letting him play online games with a live chat feature. By the sound of it, he could type at about 80wpm (in that it sounded like his father typing) when he was doing that, in spite of still typing mostly with his two index fingers (he has serious hand issues and it actually hurts his hands to try to type the "proper" way). That was advice I got on a homeschooling list and it was excellent advice.
posted by Michele in California at 1:43 PM on June 23, 2015
Get him into a local multiplayer game of minecraft - with you or a friend - then just have a no-talking rule. That forces typing, and since its in minecraft it doesn't feel like such a chore.
posted by Joh at 1:58 PM on June 23, 2015
posted by Joh at 1:58 PM on June 23, 2015
Response by poster: He does play Minecraft on servers with text chat now, but its not really doing the job. About half the time what he types is totally illegible word salad. He really does need the structure for the basics, and then if he practices the basics on chat, well, that's a bonus.
posted by anastasiav at 2:27 PM on June 23, 2015
posted by anastasiav at 2:27 PM on June 23, 2015
Mavis Beacon (who, incidentally, is not a real person) has made very well-reviewed typing instruction for decades. This one looks like it might be a perfect fit.
posted by jbickers at 2:47 PM on June 23, 2015
posted by jbickers at 2:47 PM on June 23, 2015
The BBC's Dance Mat Typing has animal characters and big songs, and I think it helped my son's keyboarding. It was not dull, though it is web-based.
posted by Francolin at 3:39 PM on June 23, 2015
posted by Francolin at 3:39 PM on June 23, 2015
I rather like the new "The Typing of the Dead: Overkill" which is like a remake, and I've done it. It's a blast, but then I'm an adult. If he has no problem with zombie games or such it should be enough enticement to get him to treat it as a shooter.
posted by kschang at 10:38 PM on June 23, 2015
posted by kschang at 10:38 PM on June 23, 2015
Find an old laptop*. Install Ubuntu - it's easy. Download free "educational software" like TuxType. My kids love it and I have no clue about using Linux or command lines etc.
*or repartition the existing hard drive, but that's more complicated.
posted by guy72277 at 6:32 AM on June 25, 2015
*or repartition the existing hard drive, but that's more complicated.
posted by guy72277 at 6:32 AM on June 25, 2015
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