Keyboarding Page

Use the home row!  Use the home row!  Use the home row! Use the home row!  Use the home row!  Use the home row!

If you ever visit our computer lab you will hear me saying the phrase "use the home row" over and over again.  All of the students at SHIS are learning to use the computer keyboard correctly.  We have a very good software program called UltraKey that teaches the students the finger positions that go with each key on the keyboard.  Correct keyboarding is a skill that will serve them well the rest of their life.  Parents/guardians can help reinforce proper keyboarding by encouraging their children to use the correct hand positions when they are using their home computers.  I have included some keyboarding practice links that are fun to try at home too.  If they practice and use the home row anytime they sit in front of a computer, they will become fast and accurate keyboarders!

As an incentive for the students this year we have an ocean keyboarding wall in computer lab.  Students who complete all of the UltraKey lessons and skill checks, and pass a keyboarding test, receive an ocean animal to place at the beginning of the keyboarding wall.  Then they will start to work on their keyboarding speed.  As their speed increases throughout the year their sea creature will swim across the wall.  The 3rd grade word per minute goal is 15 wpm, 4th grade goal is 20 wpm and 5th grade goal is 25 wpm.  If all of the students in a class make it to swimming in the ocean, the whole class will receive a popcorn party.   Our slogan this year is:

Get "SEA"rious About Keyboarding  

KEYBOARDING LINKS

Typer Shark  http://games.yahoo.com/console/tps

Dance Mat Typing  http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/typing/ 

Alpha Attack  http://www.gamequarium.com/alphattack/alphattack.htm 

Arachnid Falls  http://www.gamequarium.com/arachnidfalls/arachnidfalls2.html 

Typing of the Ghosts  http://www.gamequarium.com/typingghosts.html 

Foggies  http://www.powertyping.com/fog/foggies.html 

Space Invaders Typing  http://www.freetypinggame.net/play9.asp 

Save the Sailboat  http://www.freetypinggame.net/play1.asp 

Outerspace Fleet Commander  http://www.freetypinggame.net/play2.asp 

Frogs Off Their Diet  http://www.freetypinggame.net/play3.asp 

Barracuda Typing  http://www.powertyping.com/baracuda/baracuda.htm 

Cup Stack Typing  http://www.gamequarium.com/cupstacktyping.html 

KidsPage Alphadrop  http://www.thekidzpage.com/freekidsgames/games/alphadrop/alphadropgame.html 

Nimble Fingers http://www.nimblefingers.com/

Keyboarding Practice  http://www.davis.k12.ut.us/cjh/appliedtech/Business/keyboarding/ 

Krazy Keyboarding for Kids  http://webinstituteforteachers.org/~gammakeys/Lesson/Introduction.htm 

Fearless Frieda Game Goo Keyboarding  http://www.cogcon.com/gamegoo/games/frieda/frieda.html 

Abcya Keyboarding Challenge  http://www.abcya.com/keyboard.htm 

KeyTutor  http://www.usspeller.com/keytutor.html 

Free Typing Game  http://www.freetypinggame.net/free-typing-lesson.asp