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
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.
Watch 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.