A summary of how and why the StarTouch course is very different from other typing courses – and even surprisingly different from most people’s expectations.
Designed to help you decide if StarTouch is the approach for you!
Tips & Principles for ‘Best Practice’ Keyboard Practice
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But this is like ‘hammering away’ at something as if you’re trying to force it to behave! And in most cases it will rapidly become repetition “ad nauseum”. In other words, sooner or later you’ll get sick of it! You’ll start to feel it’s like a chore; a necessary evil; even a punishment.
And it will therefore likely be counter-productive. Raising your distraction levels, lowering your mental engagement, possibly building a sense of begrudging the whole thing. And even risking a false impression of mastery.
Also, it’s unrealistic; how often in real life do we immediately and repeatedly type the same thing (same thing same thing same thing same thing?!?)
So it’s usually best if you do not type the same thing repeatedly in succession.
Instead always seek to type something new, next!
If something you type (anything: part of a story drill, a word, a phrase) is “Right First Time” (RFT)… then rather than type it again, straight away, type something new…
This helps your brain to stay very fully involved. Because you have to keep thinking about building deliberate variety and randomness into all your practice (whilst at the same time finding ways to repeat any ‘target’ behaviour as much as possible… but just not in a regular, repeated, patterned way!)
So avoid Brute Repetition.
It’s much better to do Smart Repetition.
This is not the best type of practice at all.
We call it Brute Repetition.
And it’s not ideal – for at least 3 reasons…
It’s better to do Smart Repetition (which is a combination of techniques we call RNT and Outnumbering and Variations on a Theme)
But if you’d like to know why Brute Repetition doesn’t help, here are at least three reasons:
Avoid Brute Repetition
Many people mistakenly think that good practice involves repeating things ‘for the sake of repeating them’ like this:
Stage 6: yhn yhn yhn yhn yhn ujm ujm ujm…
Stage 7: up up up up… OR hat cup hat cup hat cup hat cup…
Stage 8: in the end, in the end, in the end…
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Is it really just a 1- or 2-day course?
What’s the ideal class size?
No “IT Training Room” setup required!
Many or most of these points, we discussed:
> Whilst I normally recommend a 2-day training intervention for ‘in house courses’, we did not discuss this. I had got the impression from Julie Hester at Taylor Mason that 1-day was the max you could envisage people taking ‘away from the day job’. And you and I discussed the difficulty of needing to ‘man the desks’ while some people trained.
> so we discussed groups of max class size 8. And I’m assuming it’ll be one day events.
> the workshops will therefore be very full-on, and ideally quite full days. 9am to 5.30 if possible.
> however the training programme does not just involved the tuition workshops. Participants will have to commit to practise in the days and weeks after Day 2 – and ideally commit to keeping in touch with me as trainer/coach, to ensure I can support them in their all-important implementation of what they’ve learnt! This post-course support phase does not cover a set time-frame. It depends on individuals and the intensity of their practice ‘regime’.
> the cost of the programme includes follow-up emails to the group from me, online resources and reminders, and a web-based practice tool which submits people’s results to me, so I can analyse them and send individual feedback. This individual “email coaching” is on offer for as long as it’s of help and requested by each individual trainee. No cut-off date.
> Surprisingly we don’t need an IT training setup. You don’t need to supply computers. I bring wireless keyboards with me. And the ideal room is spacious, secluded/not overlooked, with flexible furniture, a projector/screen, and a flipchart (and permission to stick paper and labels up on walls/windows/cupboards)
> Trainees will learn above all to be 100% accurate (or very close) with their new skill. Which means they’ll be trained to be SLOW (at first), only building speed through post-training practice (not during the learning events!)
> Consequently they’ll be permitted (in fact: instructed!) to continue using their old skill for a while longer, to get work done, whilst finding time to practise the new skill when the pressure’s off. I described this to you with an Old House / New House analogy. The day for ‘moving in’ to the new property will be a few weeks later for most people (and different for everyone). But it *could* be as little as 10-20 days after the training.
> One of the biggest surprises is that surprisingly little of the training day is spent at the keyboards. Control over eyes, posture, arms and hands can be trained away from keyboards. And it’s easier and better to train people away from the thing that (for the past X years) has been DEMANDING their attention. I train them first and foremost to pay attention to themselves and take control of themselves without looking down. > And this initial training is just that: training. Not teaching or telling. They’ll actually be better at not looking down by lunchtime than they were at 9am. And their ability to sit in the right position and (later) put their fingers in the right position on the keys will be very THOROUGHLY trained into them. So that they won’t forget or half-remember, or get it ‘sort of’ right. We’ll aim for 100% accuracy in the body control. > we’ll also train finger dexterity on the keys SEPARATELY from any typing of letters. Most typing courses have people learn to use their little fingers and ring fingers WHILST trying to type (and remember how to type) letters. This confuses the brain/body as it’s too much new stuff all at once. Finger dexterity as a separate physical component of typing is best trained and developed separately from thinking about letters/typing!
> Even when I train them for the actual typing activity… I *still* won’t do it with reference to or use of the keyboards. Instead, by doing some very surprising but extremely engaging, active, interactive and actually quite entertaining activities, I manage to train their physiological connections from brain to fingers, so that they can VERY ACCURATELY choose the correct finger and make the correct movement for any letter of the alphabet and main punctuation. I’m training their body to ‘know’ which finger and which movement, rather than teaching their brain to remember the keyboard layout and work backwards from there, inferring or guessing which finger’s responsible…
*******************
Susie, there may have been more we spoke about. Please let me know if there’s anything specific you think I’ve left out.
And I’m always aware that *talking* about this strange unexpected approach can often seem clearer than trying to write it / read it.
So if the colleagues you want to confer with, to help decide about pressing ahead would like to chat with me, I’m more than willing to help any way I can to communicate and convince as needed!
Many or most of these points, we discussed:
> Whilst I normally recommend a 2-day training intervention for ‘in house courses’, we did not discuss this. I had got the impression from Julie Hester at Taylor Mason that 1-day was the max you could envisage people taking ‘away from the day job’. And you and I discussed the difficulty of needing to ‘man the desks’ while some people trained.
> so we discussed groups of max class size 8. And I’m assuming it’ll be one day events.
> the workshops will therefore be very full-on, and ideally quite full days. 9am to 5.30 if possible.
> however the training programme does not just involved the tuition workshops. Participants will have to commit to practise in the days and weeks after Day 2 – and ideally commit to keeping in touch with me as trainer/coach, to ensure I can support them in their all-important implementation of what they’ve learnt! This post-course support phase does not cover a set time-frame. It depends on individuals and the intensity of their practice ‘regime’.
> the cost of the programme includes follow-up emails to the group from me, online resources and reminders, and a web-based practice tool which submits people’s results to me, so I can analyse them and send individual feedback. This individual “email coaching” is on offer for as long as it’s of help and requested by each individual trainee. No cut-off date.
> Surprisingly we don’t need an IT training setup. You don’t need to supply computers. I bring wireless keyboards with me. And the ideal room is spacious, secluded/not overlooked, with flexible furniture, a projector/screen, and a flipchart (and permission to stick paper and labels up on walls/windows/cupboards)
> Trainees will learn above all to be 100% accurate (or very close) with their new skill. Which means they’ll be trained to be SLOW (at first), only building speed through post-training practice (not during the learning events!)
> Consequently they’ll be permitted (in fact: instructed!) to continue using their old skill for a while longer, to get work done, whilst finding time to practise the new skill when the pressure’s off. I described this to you with an Old House / New House analogy. The day for ‘moving in’ to the new property will be a few weeks later for most people (and different for everyone). But it *could* be as little as 10-20 days after the training.
> One of the biggest surprises is that surprisingly little of the training day is spent at the keyboards. Control over eyes, posture, arms and hands can be trained away from keyboards. And it’s easier and better to train people away from the thing that (for the past X years) has been DEMANDING their attention. I train them first and foremost to pay attention to themselves and take control of themselves without looking down. > And this initial training is just that: training. Not teaching or telling. They’ll actually be better at not looking down by lunchtime than they were at 9am. And their ability to sit in the right position and (later) put their fingers in the right position on the keys will be very THOROUGHLY trained into them. So that they won’t forget or half-remember, or get it ‘sort of’ right. We’ll aim for 100% accuracy in the body control. > we’ll also train finger dexterity on the keys SEPARATELY from any typing of letters. Most typing courses have people learn to use their little fingers and ring fingers WHILST trying to type (and remember how to type) letters. This confuses the brain/body as it’s too much new stuff all at once. Finger dexterity as a separate physical component of typing is best trained and developed separately from thinking about letters/typing!
> Even when I train them for the actual typing activity… I *still* won’t do it with reference to or use of the keyboards. Instead, by doing some very surprising but extremely engaging, active, interactive and actually quite entertaining activities, I manage to train their physiological connections from brain to fingers, so that they can VERY ACCURATELY choose the correct finger and make the correct movement for any letter of the alphabet and main punctuation. I’m training their body to ‘know’ which finger and which movement, rather than teaching their brain to remember the keyboard layout and work backwards from there, inferring or guessing which finger’s responsible…
*******************
Susie, there may have been more we spoke about. Please let me know if there’s anything specific you think I’ve left out.
And I’m always aware that *talking* about this strange unexpected approach can often seem clearer than trying to write it / read it.
So if the colleagues you want to confer with, to help decide about pressing ahead would like to chat with me, I’m more than willing to help any way I can to communicate and convince as needed!
What is Touch Typing?
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Surely you can't learn how to touch type in as little as one or two days?!?
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Using the Online Practice App
Read through these instructions carefully before you click the link below to use the online practice app…
1 - Top or Bottom of the "Mountain"?
Click “Stages 5-8” to record your KEYBOARD Exercises
(only after you’ve ‘conquered’ the Lower Slopes!)
Click “Stages 1-4” to record various NON Keyboard Exercises
(eg: when you’re away from the pressure of work, either at your desk when you’re in control of your time – but ideal on smartphone or tablet away from your desk too!)
2 - Identify Yourself
- Enter your FULL NAME.
- Leave the email field BLANK
(assuming you know StarTouch already has your address) - Click “Continue”
3 - Selecting Lower Slopes Stages...
Select the desired Non-Keyboard Stage
Jump to how to use the Top Half of the Mountain – Stages 5-8
Stage 1 – Story Performing
1 - Top or Bottom of the "Mountain"?
Click the Bottom Half of the Mountain (Stages 1-4) for NON Keyboard Practice (eg: when you’re away from the pressure of work, either at your desk when you’re in control of your time – but ideal on smartphone or tablet away from your desk too!)
2 - Identify Yourself
- Enter your FULL NAME.
- Leave the email field BLANK
(assuming you know StarTouch already has your address) - Click “Continue”
3 - Selecting Stage 1 (Story Performing)
Select “Stage 1” and click “Confirm”
Surely you can't learn how to touch type in as little as one or two days?!?
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When is a 1-or 2-day course NOT a 1- or 2-day course?
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The “Memory Doodles” technique (working title)
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This is a P-creative thing. (Someone once told me there’s “P-creativity” where you think up something you’ve never thought of before, even if others have thought of it for themselves elsewhere at other times… and “H-creative” where you think up something no-one’s has ever thought of before). I don’t think I’ve seen this sort of approach elsewhere, which doesn’t mean to say it doesn’t exist… but I’m quite excited about the idea as it’s building in me!
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For the time being I’m calling it a “Memory Doodles” technique.
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The idea is that it links writing/drawing up with other sensory focusing on something that needs to be remembered. Thus what you do with a pen on paper joins up with speaking aloud (ideally in a varied and ‘interesting’ way), and thinking about any other aspects of the ‘content’ that you can (letters/spelling, sounds, etc)…