Typing is the process of writing by pressing keys on a computer, cellphone, keyboard or typewriter. It is distinguished from other methods of text input like handwriting and speech recognition. The world’s first ever typist was Lilian Scholes, the daughter of Christian Scholes, who invented the first practical typewriter.
With the drastic increase of technologies around the world in the last 100 years, typing has become an absolutely necessary skill for anyone, regardless of their occupation.
Whether you like it or not, we’re all living in a technological age and it doesn’t look like we’re going to slow down at any point. Children are going to be exposed to technologies sooner or later so you might as well prepare them while they’re young. This can actually lead to quite a few benefits for them.
Firstly, the sooner they start learning, the faster they’ll learn how to touch-type. Touch-typing means being able to type accurately and quickly without actually having to look at the keyboard. If a person has to keep switching between looking at the screen and the keyboard then they’re essentially wasting half of their time. Children who know how to touch-type are typically much faster and efficient when doing school work.
Furthermore, learning how to type will not only strengthen muscle memory but also improve their reading, writing and spelling skills.
Nowadays, even though typewriters are basically obsolete, the act of typing has never been more widespread and necessary. Although kids should still start by learning how to write by hand, it’s becoming increasingly important to get kids accustomed to using keyboards as well. In a society dominated by technologically based communication, it’s useful to start learning as soon as possible.
Although there isn’t a “best” age for your child to start using a keyboard, you can usually start teaching them once their hands are big enough to comfortably fit on a keyboard. For most children this usually happens between the ages 5-7 which is around the time they finish kindergarten and start first grade. This is a convenient time to start as it also coincides with the stage in their life when they start to learn how to read and write by hand. If you start teaching your child at a young age it’s important to start slow and allow them to learn at their own pace. Begin by showing them where each letter is located on the keyboard and continue from there. Although it might take a while for them to get started in the beginning, they'll start improving in no time.
Yes! If you want to help your child out and help him learn quicker you can sign him up for typing lessons. TutorExtra offers a wide variety of online courses in over 1000 subjects, including typing. Browse through our list of tutors and choose the one that suits the needs of your child the best.