a and ; — your pinkies
You learn the a and the semicolon: your pinkies rest on the outer keys of the home row.
How to find the key
- Rest your pinkies on the outer keys: left on the a, right on the semicolon.
- Tap them without moving your hand.
- Feel that your whole hand now rests on the home row.
1234567890
qwertyuiop
asdfghjkl;'
zxcvbnm,./
shiftshift
- key you are practising
- bump on the f and j
- home row
A worked example
aaa ;;;
- Rest your left pinky on the a and your right pinky on the semicolon.
- Tap the a three times without moving your hand.
- Press the space bar with your thumb.
- Tap the semicolon three times with your right pinky.
More examples
a; ;a a;
- Tap the a with your left pinky.
- Tap the semicolon with your right pinky.
- Press the space bar after each group.
asdf jkl;
- Tap the a, s, d and f from left to right.
- Press the space bar.
- Tap the j, k, l and semicolon from left to right.
Try it yourself
This is best practised in the real exercise, where you click, drag or tap yourself.
Practise thisWatch out
Your pinky slides off the a when you tap it.
Tap with the tip of your pinky and keep your wrist still.
Tips
- The line asdf jkl; is the whole home row: type it a few times to warm up.
- Your pinkies are the shortest fingers, so keep them curled.
Why it works
With the a and the semicolon, all eight fingers rest on the home row. From now on every key is a step from one of these eight places. Rest your whole hand and it is ready.