We all want to type faster than our current words per minute (wpm). Whether it’s just to get your ideas into the computer quickly or increasing your reaction time in an online video game, how fast you type can have a serious impact on your success with both. But what do we need to do to improve our typing speed? While our keyboards can help you to type faster, and they do-I went from an average of 80wpm to about 98wpm in 3 weeks, there are so many other ways to build your typing speed outside of a keyboard. If you are looking for some great resources to get your fingers flying, I have dug up a list that will get you started.
I’m a firm believer of start at the beginning when learning a new skill. First things are first, If you don’t know where to place your fingers on the keyboard, you are never going to get up to speed with typing. So, one of the first resources I found, Custom Typing, will show you the proper finger placement on the keyboard. What’s really nice is that the finger placement page is interactive, allowing you to type and see what fingers press each key. Believe it or not, you can save serious time by learning proper finger placement on the keyboard.
If you want to continue learning about typing, including a review of finger placement, there are a few free online typing courses that will help you:
Typing Web is a free online typing tutor that will help you learn to type with interactive lessons. The lessons give you feedback on your accuracy and wpm. You can even get your typing speed certified to show employers and friends you aren’t exaggerating about your amazing typing speed.
Peter’s Online Typing Course offers a series of lessons to get you used to typing including several typing exercises.
Once you’ve learned how to properly type and thrown the hunt and peck out the door, practice is the best way to increase your typing speed. You can always practice by typing a daily journal, writing a blog, or whatever you want to type. However, there is another alternative and that is typing games.
One of my favorite is TyprX. You’ll get a blurb to type and compete against other typists or a computer bot. The site displays the highest speeds for the day on the front page and I am always working to put my name on this list. I love the competitive aspect of the game, whether I’m racing someone or attempting to beat one of my high scores.
Fun to Type has a good variety of typing games for practice as well. They are all very nicely designed and even the simplest of them will help improve your touch typing skills.
And finally, for those of you with children, the BBC has a typing program for kids called Dance Mat Typing. I’ve used it and I think it’s a pretty fun way for kids of all ages to learn typing. It’s a great interactive tutorial that teaches typing with animated characters and game-like exercises. Nowadays it pays to learn to type early as it is definitely a life-long skill.
Now that you’ve got several options for improving your typing skills, it’s time to learn touch typing and improve your typing speed! Not only will it improve your productivity, but you might enjoy your keyboard even more.