April 2026

Type the Word

Hey Reader,

It's Josh, from Type the Word. I have lots of exciting updates to share. This update includes a of demo of the new Google Classroom integration and details about the new Goals and Memorization features available in TTW.

If you are new to TTW, here are some links to get you connected:

• Find out more about TTW in the newsletter archive​
• Connect with other users on the discord​
• Or email me feedback at josh@typetheword.site​

Growth Update

In March, we typed over 74,000 verses!
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When we hit 100,000 verses in 2024 I remember having this thought: "even if everyone stops using TTW now it's been so worth it." And now, we are approaching that number of verses in a single month. I'm humbled to get to steward this project and I'm always encouraged by your discipline.

Google Classroom

What would the world look like if every student left high school with Roman 8 and Matthew 5-7 memorized?.. I want to find out. This integration is the beginning of how I hope to get there.

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Here is a demo of how the integration works:

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1. Teachers can create assignments in TTW that are mirrored in Google Classroom
2. Students can then open TTW from Google Classroom and type through the assigned Bible passage
3. As they do teachers get a detailed view of how they are doing
4. And once they complete their assignment it's automatically submitted back to Google Classroom

My goal is to take the toil out of managing memorization and typing speed goals in the Christian school / home school context. So I've

1. Created goals for managing bigger semester long or course long planning
2. Created different typing modes to progressively remove words or just show the first letter of words to support memorization

And next I'll be working on

1. Assessments so that you can test students for memorization, speed, and comprehension
2. A curriculum sharing feature so you can lean on the wisdom of what's worked for other teachers when planning your semester long goals
3. Student analytics so that teachers can see how their students are progressing over time
4. Learning modes so that younger students can learn about the home row while passively meditating on the Bible

Over the past two months 2 more schools have agreed to pilot TTW, and I'm looking for more partners to pilot TTW in a classroom this summer and fall. If you know a teacher or administrator that would benefit from TTW please send them the demo above and a link to this post. If someone is interested in bringing TTW into their school intro me over email (josh@typetheword.site) and I'll be sure to follow up with them.

Bookmarks

Up until today, the logo link in the top left of your screen has gone to your most recent typing location. This has worked if your only typing in one location, but it's important to be able to save multiple typing locations and have access to them all.

So as of today if you click on the logo link it will bring you to a new home page. There are a couple of new things here, but the top Bookmarks section is a list of your five most recent typing locations.

Goals and Next actions

And that's not all! This new home page also has Next Actions and Goals. I want to support Memorization in TTW in a first class way. I've been thinking about the different memorization apps I've tried, and I've been trying to understand why they've ultimately never worked for me.

My hypothesis is that they try to automate too much. You know that feeling ... where the memorization app says you have something memorized, but you don't, so then you have to fight the automated system to make sure it prompts you to keep practicing. I want to avoid this.

My vision for memorization in TTW is to not automate everything, but to instead give you a really great toolset for setting up a memorization plan that you can tweak as you progress.

I've been reading GTD, and that's how I arrived at "Next Actions" and "Goals." It all starts with creating a goal, goals are comprised of actions, which you can sort around and prioritize, then from the home page you only ever see your "next action" the thing you need to do next. This allows you to plan out how you are going to type through the epistles or memorize John 1, while keeping things simple in the day to day.

Typing is self evident. If you typed it, it's been typed. But just because you did memory exercises, doesn't mean you have it memorized. I'm hopeful this framework will help us tackle more complex goals like memorization.

Memorization modes

Speaking of memorization, there are new two modes available when you create actions, "First letter masking" and "Full word masking". I've been using these for the past week and they've already been immensely helpful as I've been working on memorizing Joshua 1:8-9

Here is a demo of the new home page and the new memorization modes:

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Your input shapes my decision making. Personally, I'll be memorizing James 3 and 4, and using this text to build the best memorization tools I can. If you have had a big memorization goal you've been procrastinating, now is a good time to get started.

I'm creating a channel in the Discord specifically about memorization. Would love for you to join, share your memorization progress, share what's worked best for memorization in the past, and we can also use this channel for iterating on the memorization tools in Type the Word!

A scripture I have been thinking about

​James 4:13-17​

Creating this Google Classroom integration has been a growing experience. I'm a software engineer, and something I love about software is it's a controlled environment where you can basically build anything you have the discipline to pursue.

Building a company, selling a vision, and connecting with schools is totally different. It's so much more dynamic and out of my control. James has been exactly what I need for this season. I have to surrender to the Lord's will. "If the Lord wills, this integration will help schools. If the Lord wills, I'll be able to make a memorization tool that works for me and for others."

At the same time this is balanced by a bit of an existential reminder. "What is your life? For you are a mist." Time is short. I believe this is the right thing for me to spend my time on, so I can go forward in faith and courage and trust him for the things that are out of my control.

He is worthy of our surrender.

Josh