The keyboard and mouse are the main tools you’ll use to interact with a computer. Learning how to use them is important.

Place the keyboard directly in front of you on the desk. Put the mouse on one side of the keyboard where it feels comfortable.

The mouse controls the pointer on the screen. When you move the mouse on your desk, the pointer moves the same way on the screen. A mouse usually has two buttons—left and right. You can interact with the computer by moving the pointer to an item on the screen and clicking a button.

On laptops, you can use a trackpad instead of a mouse. The trackpad is below the keyboard. Move your finger across the trackpad to control the pointer. Some trackpads don’t have separate buttons, so you tap or press the trackpad to click.

The keyboard lets you type letters, numbers, and words. When you see a blinking vertical line on the screen, called the cursor, you can start typing.

Note: The mouse pointer is also called a cursor, but it looks different from the blinking line used for typing.