Teach Yourself Typing

Online learning requires computer use. Part of basic computer skills is typing knowledge. By learning to type you'll be able to more quickly finish assignments and it'll be easier to type any requests for assistance to your instructors. The good news is that you don't need to learn how to type 80 to 100 words a minute to effectively complete most online or continuing education courses. Reaching this level of speed and accuracy in typing takes practice and often professional instruction. But it's easy to teach yourself the basics. Here are a few points to consider.

Proper Hand Position

Letters on a keyboard are specifically designed to make it easy to type quickly. This is why they're not in alphabetical order. Every keyboard is set up the same. It'll take a while to remember where all the letters are, but you can help yourself by positioning your hands correctly. On the left side of the keyboard is the letters a-s-d-f. Your left-hand pinky should be hovering over the "a" and the index over the "f". The remaining fingers will automatically be on the "s" and "d". Your left thumb should rest on or below the space bar.

On the right side of your keyboard you'll notice j-k-l-;. Your right index finger should be on the "j" and your pinky finger should be on the semi-colon. Your right-hand thumb should be on the keyboard. When typing, the only activity your thumb does is press the space bar.

Moving the Fingers

The fingers on your left hand always remain hovered over the a-s-f-d but move over the letters of the left-side of the keyboard when typing. The top left row is q-w-e-r-t. The left pinky reaches for the "q", the ring finger reaches for the "w", the middle finger reaches for the "e" and the pointer finger is responsible for the "r" and "t". For the bottom row, the pointer finger reaches for the "v" and "b", the middle finger reaches for the "c", the ring finger goes on the "x" and the pinky reaches down to the "z".

For the right side. Maintain the home position of j-k-l-;. The pinky reaches for the "p", the ring finger reaches for the "o", the middle finger reaches for the "i" and the pointer finger reaches for the "y" and "u". For the bottom letters, the pink reaches for the forward slash (/), the ring finger reaches for the period (.), the middle finger goes down to the comma (,), and the index finger reaches for the "n" and "m".

The pinky finger of each hand is also responsible for pressing down the "shift' key when you would like to create a capital letter.

Practice

Practice the letters in groups with the appropriate hand to help you remember where the keys are located and which fingers are responsible for each key. There are a variety of free typing exercises available online to help you practice. Or you can purchase a typing exercise book from and bookstore.