I received this product for free and was compensated for my time. The opinions are my own and I was not required to provide a positive review.
My, how times have changed! When I learned to type it was on an actual typewriter in a high school classroom filled with loud machines. We used whiteout, manually counted our words per line, and turned in actual typewritten papers to our teacher.
We certainly didn’t get to play games, earn fun badges, and follow along with pirate stories from the comfort of our own home!
Such are the advantages Caroline has learning typing today!
TypeKids Online Typing Course
TypeKids is a fun way for kids to learn keyboarding skills. When the opportunity to review this program presented itself, I jumped on it because I know how important it is for Caroline to learn proper keyboarding skills. Whereas typing was once optional, it’s now absolutely critical for kids to learn. And the earlier she masters this skill, the better.
The physical act of writing is also not on Caroline’s list of favorite things to do. Knowing how to type well will open up other learning opportunities for her even now so this was a great learning opportunity for her from that aspect as well.
Engaging Material for Younger Learners
The TypeKids program is set up in thirty lessons. Each time Caroline completes a lesson, a new part of the pirate story is unlocked. The story drew Caroline right in and she was very interested in getting through each lesson to find out what happened next!
Students also unlock games to play throughout the course and earn badges for completing different tasks.
One aspect that we both liked is that while she is doing a practice lesson, a pirate ship moves across the screen. She likes being able to see that with each keystroke she is making progress toward the end.
Independent Learning for Right-Brained Learners
One of the aspects I like best about TypeKids is I can just turn Caroline loose on it and it is pretty much self-directed. I sat with her during the first few lessons until she felt confident navigating the different aspects of the program and website. Otherwise she’s pretty much able to work independently on this. I still sit near her while she’s doing it to keep an eye on what might give her problems (and she likes the company), but she really doesn’t need my help after just a few practice sessions.
For right-brained children who love to learn and don’t like to be taught, this is the perfect fit. I cannot imagine sitting down with Caroline and instructing her on how to type. I don’t think so! This is perfect for our learning styles and family!
Intelligent Course Adapts to Child’s Needs
One great feature with TypeKids is that the program tracks the letters that give your child the most difficulty and adapts the lessons to help meet that need. So if you have two learners in your family, they will each receive lessons tailored to their specific learning needs based on their performance.
Overall Positive Typing Program
Overall I think TypeKids is a great typing program. The only “negative” I would point out is that the pirate story is not a fully animated cartoon. The story is read by a narrator and each section has a few illustrations that stay on the screen while you listen to the story. It is fine that way, but I wanted to point out that it is not an animated cartoon in case that makes a difference to someone considering purchasing this program.
I haven’t used any other online typing programs so I can’t offer a comparison. I can say that Caroline is very particular about materials and programs we use in our homeschooling and she enjoys using this program so TypeKids is definitely doing something right!
Both my kids love this. They’ve learned quite a bit so far. The oldest has been doing it since was 6 and the youngest since she was 4. Great program!