Most Frequently Asked Questions by Home Study Students:

Q. How long should I spend on each lesson?
A. You should spend at least 2 days on each lesson. One day to introduce the lesson and one day to review.

Q. What do they mean when they say apply “real time principles”?
A. Apply the principle that applies (i.e., AE reversal using an * asterisk, short vowel for V)

The Hyphen –

Q. How do I write a hyphen?
A. You do not write the hyphen. It is only there to indicate a “final” side letter.
i.e., -L would mean the final L, on the right side of the keyboard.

The Slash /

Q. Do we write the slash?
A. You do not write the slash. It is only there to indicate a second stroke.
i.e., Pails would be written PAEUL/Z.

Keeping up with the speed –

Q. Some of the material is spoken at faster speeds than I’m able to write it.
A. Speed is not an issue at the very early stages of your learning. Some instructors and/or some of the tapes may contain dictation of sentences at faster speeds only for the sake of those who can write it. Your focus should be on accuracy, though, not speed. If you are not able to keep up, just go back to it, after a week or two, and you’ll see that you will be able to write it at that point.

Printed Materials versus audio

Q. Why are some of the printed drills in the book not on the audio files?
A. Some material is used for “new” material, something that hasn’t been drilled, and may be used for transcription purposes at a later time. The audio files are not exactly verbatim from the book.

Positioning of your fingers

Q. Should my hands be slightly curved and use the tips of my fingers?
A. Yes. Your hands need to be curved, slightly. Only use your fingers tips and be careful not to be using flat fingers. We have a tendency to do that, but try to keep your fingers slightly bent. There will be hand and finger positioning that will be very difficult to achieve if you develop the habit of writing with flat fingers.

Some phrases to remember

A. The phrase “are the” is written using Initial R, on the left side, and Final T on the right side. Some have a tendency to use the final R and T on the left side.

A. “Can the” can not be phrased because it will stand for the word Account, later on in your lessons.

Practice Time

Q. How long should I practice?
A. Practice time should be about an hour a day. If you can do more, please do. Most full-time students write about 3 to 3 and a half hours a day on their machines with read back and are encouraged to practice an additional hour or more each night.

Lesson 8

Q. Is this a particularly hard lesson?
A. Lesson 8 is tough, no question about it. When you’re at lesson 15, lesson 8 will seem easy. Try to master this principle by using the letters of the keyboard to be your guide. Remember that “v” sound gets the short vowel. The F sound gets the whole vowel sound because there is an F on the keyboard. Does that make more sense that way? You will notice that not long from now, you won’t even think about F or V or short or long, you will just know how to write the word and you won’t have to think about it any more.

Shadows

Q. Is this normal?
A. You will see shadows showing up on your notes and that’s fine. Your fingers will get stronger as you move ahead and those shadows will clear up. Do the finger drills that were sent in your packet or provided with your theory book and do them every night. Be sure to read your notes out loud. If you read them to yourself, you will have a tendency to skip over mistakes easier. Be sure to use a red pen when marking shadows and misstrokes, so you can easily detect where any problem areas are developing.

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