How to learn to touch type?

[Nateismine]

What is the best way of teaching my kids (8 and 12) and myself (old) to touch type?

Dance mat typing (online) is always quite popular with the kids in my class and seems to develop their typing skills but it would depend on their starting level and might be too basic.

No idea these days but 20 years ago I used Mavis Beacon!

Ive been touch typing since I was 15, and now have a speed of 110wpm. Its an awesome skill to have. You need the Qwerty method.

This website is pretty good!

www.typingclub.com/

I second typingclub.com. My 15 year old is now a typing wizard. We paid for premium and it was the best investment.

Our whole family used the Mavis Beacon program (years ago). I couldn't believe how well it worked on me (a serial failure in the past).

My very young son enjoyed it and my slightly older daughter said that Mavis Beacon was the kindest teacher she had ever had. (Is that a bit sad?)

We are all confident typists now.

I taught myself in the mid 70s with some program when I used to help out the office junior at my dad's place of work in my summer holidays. I learned loads of skills there. I can type quite fast without looking at the keyboard...I thought going into medicine I wouldn't need it. How wrong I was!

You lift the part that covers the keys on your typewriter and slip a piece of A4 in as you're closing it. Keep your fingers under that paper at all times and never look or you'll get the wooden ruler. You'll learn soon enough because tippex hasn't been invented yet - that bloody pencil rubber makes holes in the paper. Grrr

Another vote for Mavis Beacon.

Mavis Beacon worked magic on my very klutzy unco-ordinated fingers

I taught myself with Mavis Beacon.

Touch typing is something I occasionally do for fun as I love being able to do it so much!

The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.
The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.

Mum plonked me in front of our clunkety clunk Olivetti manual type writer when I was seven. We had a book of typing exercises that came with it. I really enjoyed it and treated it like a game. I still remember the smell of the ink and the way the keys used to get stuck sometimes.

She said it would always be something to fall back on. Now I'm an IT consultant it's proven very useful just not in the way she imagined!

I bet there's loads of free online resources for typing now. Try Googling typing games for kids.