About Week 6 of the semester

Orientation to Technique Checks
		This presentation will help you prepare to take a technique check after Lesson 10. You are required to watch it either at home or in our labs. Click here for the pdf version.

After Lesson 10, you will be given a Technique Check using the form below to evaluate your technique as your instructor watches you type the paragraph shown at the bottom of this page to be sure you are using acceptable technique.

You MUST use the correct fingers on all the keys and be able to type by touch (without looking).
You don't need to type fast or be concerned with a few errors. You DO need to type with acceptable technique on all the areas indicated on the Keyboarding Technique form below. The shaded areas on the chart below must be rated either Acceptable or Needs Improvement in order to pass Keyboarding.

Note: Many students have problems with the keys listed below, so make sure BEFORE you come in that you are using the correct fingers; otherwise, I will have to schedule ANOTHER technique check for you and this becomes very time consuming:

C		Typed with the D finger; see Lesson 3.
X		Typed with the S finger; see Lesson 7.
B		Typed with the F finger; see Lesson 7.
Period		Typed with the L finger; see Lesson 4.
Left Shift		Hold the left shift down when you capitalize any letters typed with the right hand; see Lesson 6.
Right Shift		Hold the right shift down when you capitalize any letters typed with the left hand; see Lesson 4.

Technique

Acceptable

Needs Improvement

Not Acceptable

Eyes on copy

Correct finger reaches (strikes key with correct finger)

Continuity (keyboard without hesitation) and accuracy

Body, hand, finger, wrist, and arm position

Stroking technique (quick strokes; fingers return to home position)

Enter (J finger on home row)

Shift (F/J fingers on home row)

Tab (F finger on home home)

Rating

Excellent—Uses acceptable technique consistently

Very Good—Uses acceptable technique most of the time; needs some minor improvement

Needs Improvement—Needs several improvements

Unacceptable—Needs major improvement(s)

Technique Check Directions: Follow the directions below to practice typing this paragraph at home so that when you come in for your technique check, you are ready to go after a short warm-up.

Practice typing the copy in the second box below without looking at your hands or the computer screen. Keep your eyes on the copy at all times.
You do not have to type fast, just carefully using good technique. Do not correct errors as you type.
Remember to press the Tab () key at the start of the paragraphs. Press the Enter (¶) key twice between paragraphs.

To relearn a key:

After I assess your keyboarding technique and identify any incorrect finger reaches, click the Skillbuilding button. In the Subjects box, click New Key Drills. Click the desired key on the “live” keyboard below. You will move to the lesson where the key was introduced. Continue to the demonstration and drills lines, and type the drills to relearn the key. In this example, the left shift key must be relearned and practiced intensively.

You will be returned to the lesson where the key was first introduced to relearn the keystroke.

To practice any key intensively using MAP:

MAP is designed to be used to diagnose and then remediate keystroking problems in Lesson 20 after you have learned all the keys. However, you can use MAP early in Lessons 10-19 for intensive practice on any of the alphabetic or nonprinting keys (TAB, ENTER, RIGHT and LEFT SHIFT, and SPACE BAR) that I identify during your technique check. Do this:

Click the MAP button. In order for this MAP summary screen to appear, you must first take the MAP Pretest, which tests you on all letters learned through Lesson 20. If you have only finished Lesson 10, this passage contains reaches you have not yet learned. Therefore, do not type this passage. Instead, click Next to go to the Pretest, press any key in the Pretest box, then click Score Text.

Click MAP Summary to go directly to the MAP Summary screen below. This keyboard is "live" and you can click any key on it to go to intensive practice on that key.

In this example, the student clicked the Left Shift key and GDP dynamically generated new drill lines for intensive practice on the shift keys.