Free Typing App in Mac Store

I remember back in the day that playing Mavis Beacon was the way you learned how to type. We'd gather in a computer lab and try to race around the keyboard and finish the lesson as quickly as we possibly could. It wasn't awesome, but we needed to learn how to type and it was the standard method. Now that teachers have so much other tasks to do, typing skills have been pushed further and further down the list. Have you seen how some of our students type?!? I'll admit that I don't touch type. I typed transcripts at the ripe old age of 12 and I learned to type as fast as I could in order to get the job done and be able to stop listening to my boss' voice on the tapes over and over again. But I know that understanding how to type well and accurately is simply not a skill the majority of our students have.


This morning I came across a typing application called Typist that is available for free in the Mac App Store. There are several different "paths" that you can take in the application including Standard, Quick, and Speed Drills.

I know that many of you don't feel that this would necessarily apply to your classroom. But typing is a skillset that our students need to have regardless of how they get it. So, imagine having your students install Typist and then use it when they have down time, such as after completing an assignment or if you manage to cover the day's material before the end of class. You could even go so far as to tell them to work on the Quick track and then record what level they are on to challenge each other to get higher or the Speed track and see who can type the fastest. I know that suggesting there is time to do this is a challenge, but it would be a good skill to have our students work on should there be the opportunity.