The intermediate track begins with the two keys most beginners have been quietly avoiding. A and S sit on the home row, directly beneath fingers you have barely used so far, and they are difficult for a reason that has nothing to do with their position.
The new keys
- S — left ring finger, resting at home.
- A — left little finger, resting at home.
Neither requires a reach. Both are already under a finger. The challenge is entirely about strength and independence.
Why these two are hard
Your ring and little fingers are the weakest on your hand, and the ring finger in particular shares tendons with its neighbours — it cannot move fully independently. Try lifting only your ring finger while the others stay flat on a desk and you will feel the limit immediately.
This is normal anatomy, not a personal failing, and it does not go away. What changes with practice is your control: the ability to press with the weak finger without the hand recruiting a stronger one to help.
The compensation trap
Watch for these, because they feel efficient and will cap your speed permanently:
- Rolling the hand left to bring a stronger finger over
A. - Using the ring finger for `A` and skipping the little finger altogether.
- Lifting the index finger off `F` every time the little finger presses.
Each one works at low speed and falls apart above about 40 words per minute, when there is no longer time to reposition between keystrokes.
How to practise
Press deliberately and lightly. Weak fingers tempt you to hit harder to be sure the key registered — the opposite of what helps. Modern keyboards need very little force, and hammering tires the finger long before it builds control.
A is also the key your little finger will later use as its launch point for Q, Z, Shift, Tab and Caps Lock. Every one of those depends on this finger knowing where home is, so the work you put in here pays off repeatedly across the rest of the course.