See the picture, type its word
A picture appears, with a row of blanks underneath showing how many letters are in its word. Type the word that matches the picture, for example a dog picture is spelled d o g. As you type the correct letters, the blanks fill in. When you complete a word, you score a point and a new picture appears. You have 60 seconds, so type as many as you can. If you press a wrong letter, nothing happens, so just find the right one and keep going.
Sounding the word out as you type
Say the word out loud before your fingers move, then sound it out letter by letter as you type, which keeps the spelling on track. There is no reward for speed here, only for getting the word right, so take the time to think it through. The pictures come round again as you play on, so before long you will know a picture and its spelling in an instant, and the points come quickly after that.
Three skills joined in one game
Picture Type quietly asks a child to do three things in one move: recognize what the picture shows, remember how to spell its name, and find those letters on the keyboard. Because the skills reinforce each other, spelling a word you can picture is easier than spelling one read cold, and typing a word while you sound it out fixes it in memory more firmly. It is a genuinely rich little game, growing vocabulary, spelling and keyboard confidence together rather than one at a time. To turn that keyboard confidence into proper technique, our touch typing lessons for kids teach the correct finger for every key.
Frequently asked questions
How do you play Picture Type?
A picture appears with blanks showing how many letters its word has. Type the word that matches the picture. Correct letters fill in, and when you finish the word a new picture appears. Type as many as you can in 60 seconds.
What if you do not know how to spell the word?
Sound it out from the picture and try your best guess; a wrong letter simply does nothing, so you can keep trying letters until the right one fills in, with no penalty. The blanks also show exactly how many letters the word has, which is a helpful clue. It is a safe place to practice spelling, since mistakes cost nothing but a moment.
What kind of words does Picture Type use?
Simple, everyday words with clear pictures, like dog, sun, cat or tree, so a child can recognize the image and have a fair chance at the spelling. They are short and familiar on purpose, which keeps the focus on joining the picture, the spelling and the typing rather than on tricky vocabulary.