Student guide for writing tasks

📱💻 How to Use Your On-Screen Keyboard and Add Special Characters

Accuracy is important so at Languagenut, making sure that answers include the right punctuation and characters is necessary to be marked correct. Its important to check the flashcards found in the 'Learn' stage to see what the correct answer is.

Below is some guidance on how to locate special characters when using either your mobile phone or a laptop/PC.

Did you know that the word to describe the symbols added to a letter is called a diacritical mark. These can be a dot, line, or squiggle. When added to a letter, it changes the pronunciation, indicate stress, or distinguish its meaning.

On a Phone (iPhone or Android)

Step 1

Tap in a text box to bring up the keyboard.

Step 2

To add a special letter:

• Press and hold the letter (example: e)
• A menu of options will appear.

• Slide to the one you want, like é.

  
  

On an iPad

Step 1

Tap the text box and the keyboard will appear.

Step 2

Press and hold a letter to see extra characters.

Slide your finger to pick one, like ñ or ç.

Step 3

If you need a different language keyboard, tap the 🌐 globe button at the bottom.

On a Laptop or PC

Windows

• Hold down a letter in some apps to see options.
• Or open the emoji and symbols panel with Windows + . (full stop)

Mac

• Hold down a letter key to see accents.

• Or open the character viewer with Control + Command + Space.

  
  

✨ Top Tip

If you write in another language often, add that keyboard in your device settings. Then you can switch with the 🌐 globe icon or the language ba