Using the Mouse & Keyboard

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The Mouse (or Trackpad)

The Basics

Action	How to Do It	What It Does
Point	Move the mouse/finger on trackpad	Moves the arrow (cursor) on screen
Single-click	Press left button once	Selects something
Double-click	Press left button twice, quickly	Opens something
Right-click	Press right button once	Opens a menu of options
Scroll	Roll the wheel / two-finger swipe	Moves the page up or down

🎯 Fun Fact: The first computer mouse was made of wood! Douglas Engelbart invented it in 1964, and it was called a “mouse” because the cord looked like a tail.

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Try This Now: Mouse Practice

1. Single-click on an empty area of your desktop - nothing should happen, and that’s fine!
2. Double-click on any icon - a program should open
3. Right-click on the desktop - you’ll see a menu appear (click elsewhere to close it)
4. Scroll up and down on a webpage or document

Don’t worry if the double-click feels tricky at first. The trick is to click twice quickly without moving the mouse between clicks.

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Keyboard Shortcuts: Your New Best Friends

Here’s where things get fun. These shortcuts work in almost every program and will save you so much time.

The Essential Three

Shortcut	What It Does	Memory Trick
Ctrl + C	Copy	C for Copy
Ctrl + X	Cut	X looks like scissors
Ctrl + V	Paste	V is next to C and X

(On Mac, use Cmd instead of Ctrl)

More Time-Savers

Shortcut	What It Does
Ctrl + Z	Undo - the magic “oops” button!
Ctrl + S	Save your work
Ctrl + A	Select all (everything on the page)
Ctrl + F	Find - search for words on a page
Ctrl + P	Print

🎯 Fun Fact: Ctrl + Z (Undo) was invented because programmers kept making mistakes and wanted a quick way to fix them. It’s saved countless documents since 1974!

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Try This Now: Shortcut Practice

Let’s practice in a text document:

1. Open Notepad (Windows) or TextEdit (Mac)
2. Type a sentence: “I am learning keyboard shortcuts”
3. Press Ctrl + A to select all the text (it should highlight)
4. Press Ctrl + C to copy it
5. Press Enter to go to a new line
6. Press Ctrl + V to paste - your sentence appears again!
7. Press Ctrl + Z - watch it disappear (undo!)
8. Press Ctrl + S to save (give it any name you like)

Congratulations! You just used five keyboard shortcuts in one minute.

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The Special Keys

These keys do specific things and are handy to know:

Key	What It Does
Enter	Confirms actions, creates new lines in text
Backspace	Deletes characters to the LEFT of cursor
Delete	Deletes characters to the RIGHT of cursor
Tab	Moves to next field in forms, indents text
Caps Lock	MAKES EVERYTHING UPPERCASE (press again to turn off)
Shift	Hold for ONE capital letter, or to type symbols above numbers
Esc	Cancel or close something (the “never mind” button)

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Typing Tips for Non-Typists

No judgment here - many people hunt-and-peck with two fingers, and that’s completely fine. But here are some tricks:

• Look at the keyboard while you type - speed comes with practice
• The F and J keys have small bumps - these help your fingers find home position
• Use both hands for shortcuts - one hand holds Ctrl, the other presses the letter

🎯 Fun Fact: The QWERTY keyboard layout was designed in the 1870s for typewriters - to slow typists down so the mechanical keys wouldn’t jam! We’re still using it 150 years later.

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Quick Reference Card

Must-Know Shortcuts

Windows	Mac	What It Does
Ctrl + C	Cmd + C	Copy
Ctrl + V	Cmd + V	Paste
Ctrl + X	Cmd + X	Cut
Ctrl + Z	Cmd + Z	Undo
Ctrl + S	Cmd + S	Save
Ctrl + A	Cmd + A	Select All
Ctrl + F	Cmd + F	Find

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Key Takeaways

• Right-click for options, double-click to open
• Ctrl + Z is your best friend - it undoes almost anything!
• Copy (Ctrl+C) and Paste (Ctrl+V) will save you hours
• Tab moves between form fields
• Practice makes these shortcuts feel natural

Next up: Organizing your files and folders - because knowing where you saved something is half the battle!