Keyboarding

= Keyboarding in Third Grade =

**The Herzog Method of Keyboarding** At the beginning of September, third graders spend 5 days (for a total of 3 and 1/4 hours) in the lab being introduced to the Herzog Method of keyboarding. During this time, they learn the position of all the letters of the alphabet and the punctuation keys. They also learn which finger should type each key. The Herzog chart is a very helpful reminder for them should they forget which finger to use. 
 * The 3rd Grade Keyboarding Program**
 * After their Herzog training**, during the remainder of 1st semester, 3rd graders receive 30 minutes of weekly keyboarding practice in their classrooms using the Herzog instruction books and AlphaSmart keyboarding machines. These classes are lead by the classroom teacher.


 * During 2nd semester,** 3rd graders come to the computer lab for 30 minutes weekly to practice keyboarding using a computer application called //Type to Learn//. The technology resource teacher leads these classes.


 * Keyboarding in the Classroom Using AlphaSmart Machines**

It is very important to reinforce the “online check” at the beginning of each keyboarding session.
 * The Online Check **

Doing an “online check” means to check that: 1. The AlphaSmart machine is centered in front of you and at the edge of the desk 2. The chair is straight 3. Feet are flat on the floor 4. Back is straight---No leaning against the back of the chair. Imagine that your chair is a piano bench with no back. 5. Once you are sitting up straight, your tummy should be a hand’s width from the desk. 6. Shoulders relaxed, elbows in 7. Hands floating 8. Fingers curved 9. Middle fingers on the D and the K

1. Allow 30 min for the keyboarding lesson. 2. Start with the Daily Alphabet Review and Warm-Up exercise on p. 10. (Remember NO CAPS LOCK.) This is an automatic warm-up, review and reinforcement. The children should always begin with this. FYI, we also begin with this warm-up in the lab when the children come for Type to Learn. 3. Once the Daily Alphabet Review and Warm-Up is completed, students should turn to that day’s lesson. • Do an online check once again. • Begin with Line 1 and continue through the entire lesson (or as much as you can do in the time allotted.) • For those who finish early, have them continue keyboarding by typing other things of your choice. Some ideas might be: o Spelling words o Sentences using spelling or vocabulary words o Vocabulary words and definitions o A list of rhyming words o A paragraph • For easier classroom management, we suggest you keep all the children on the same lesson each week.
 * The Lesson **


 * HERZOG PROGRESS CHARTS **
 * At the end of the day’s session have each child color in the boxes for the activities they have COMPLETED.** If they started another activity but did not complete it, then they should NOT color that box in. Click here to see the Herzog Progress Chart.


 * Terminology/Remind the children:**
 * Do an online check!
 * Trust your fingers!
 * Floating Hands
 * Curved fingers
 * No more CAPS LOCK. Use shift key from now on for all capital letters. Yes, even in the warm-up exercise!
 * Everyone works at his own pace. Do not worry about what your neighbor is doing.
 * LEAVE YOUR MISTAKES in order to maintain momentum.
 * DO NOT USE THE BACKSPACE KEY. This is just practice.
 * Use the wall chart to help you remember which finger should type each letter.

The AlphaSmart Cart - **reminders for teachers and students **

 * ===Place AlphaSmart machines in the cart in their proper place making sure both are facing the same way.===
 * ===Take care NOT to pop the bubbles in the bubble envelopes as this is what protects the machines. If anyone insists on popping bubbles, please tell them to go home and visit this website :-) [|Virtual BubbleWrap]===
 * ===Place practice books in their proper place and keep books in numerical order.===
 * ===When turning pages in the practice books, do so carefully so the books will last longer.===
 * ===Always begin your practice with the warm-up exercise on page 10. Do an ONLINE CHECK before you begin typing.===
 * ===You NO LONGER will use CAPS LOCK when typing capital letters. Use the SHIFT KEY to type a upper case letters.===
 * ===Do one lesson each week that you have the AlphaSmart machines.===
 * ===Those who finish a lesson early should ask their teacher for a suggestion of something else they could type. (Suggestions: practice spelling words, write sentences using spelling words, write a journal entry, write a letter or a poem.)===
 * ===Finally, send the cart to the next teacher’s room at the end of the day, and be sure the cart is NOT left in the hallway at the end of the day.===

More Keyboarding Tips
Keypoints on Keyboarding from the article: “[|Teaching Keyboarding: When? Why? How?]” By Linda Starr Education World Copyright 2001

**Keypoints**

 * Top 10 Goals of Keyboarding Instruction**
 * 1) Technique
 * 2) Technique
 * 3) Technique
 * 4) Technique
 * 5) Technique
 * 6) Technique
 * 7) Technique
 * 8) Technique
 * 9) Accuracy
 * 10) Speed
 * The real key to keyboarding is technique.
 * Keyboarding is an important psychomotor skill that all students need to learn.
 * Keyboarding is a motor skill like athletics or playing an instrument. Keep doing over and over again until it becomes habit.
 * Emphasis should be on proper form not speed. Students need to have their hands on the home row, to use the proper finger for each letter, to have their wrists floating and their thumbs on the space bar.
 * The emphasis should not be on speed.
 * Students learn initially using sub-vocalization so they shouldn’t listen to music or talk too much during this process. (Quiet background music is fine.)

**Things to Tell Students**
• Tell students the memory is in the muscles. Us e the example of learning to ride a bike. Tell them that once their fingers learn the keyboard, the fingers will not forget where the keys are just as they never forget how to ride a bike once they learn. • Tell students to be patient with themselves. • Tell students that the raised dots are placed differently on different keyboards. Sometimes under the middle fingers (D,K) and sometimes under the pointer fingers (F, J).