Mouse and Keyboarding Practice

     iPad's and tablets have pretty much become a staple in many households, especially if you have children. You can see kids on tablets out at restaurants, which just goes to show how much a part of daily life they are. What was so funny to me, was that when my Kindergartners first walked into my classroom, they were amazed by the desktop computers. They had never seen a computer with a mouse and keyboard before! That amazed me because when I was their age, the first piece of technology I ever used was a desktop computer, with dial-up internet. It just goes to show how the times and technology have changed!

    

      Fast forward about a month after the beginning of the year, and my students are in the computer lab about to take MAP for the first time. I review how you have to click on the speakers to hear, and the blue "next" button to go to the next question. The test starts, and I see most of my kids trying to touch the monitor of the desktop computers, like it was a touchscreen. I stop everyone and tell them they have to use the mouse, which I'm holding up to show them. Then, the next thing I see is half of them picking the mouse up and touching the screen with it. It was a hilarious mess! I told my teammates about it and they had similar problems. 

    

      I didn't even think about how my students had probably never used a mouse before. In hindsight this is what I could have done (and will do next year): discuss with our computer teacher that they need to learn how to use a keyboard and mouse at the beginning of the year, and have them practice their keyboard and mouse skills using computer games.

     The computer games to help younger students practice keyboarding and mouse skills can be found on abcya.com.

     The specific games are "Take a Trip! Jr." and "Ghost Typing Jr." Take a Trip! Jr. helps students work on mouse control. 

     They have to click on a car and drag it to the finish line. The levels get continually harder as they have to move the car around obstacles. It helps them to learn to click and drag the mouse to move it where you want it to go. 

      

Ghost Typing Jr. helps younger students practice keyboarding. The game helps students practice remembering where each key is and helps them to gain typing speed. 

     During the game, each ghost has a letter on it. Students must type that letter as fast as they can before the ghost gets closer. If the ghost gets to close then you lose a life. 

     If you have kiddos that need mouse and keyboarding practice these games would be great for them. It's also fun for them to learn within a game format. I know, I will definitely be using them next year! Also, they are free!