Narrator has a reading mode in which familiar keys navigate content instead of typing characters. Understanding that mode makes a mixed task, such as reading instructions and completing a form, more predictable.

Start or stop Narrator with Windows+Ctrl+Enter. For a first trial, use its QuickStart material or another harmless page with headings and an editable field. Avoid learning the controls on a payment form or an unsent message addressed to someone else.

Separate navigation from text entry

Narrator+Spacebar toggles scan mode. By default, Caps Lock and Insert can serve as the Narrator modifier key. In scan mode, Up and Down move through content; Enter or Space activates the current item.

Try H to move to the next heading and Shift+H to return to the previous one. Use E to find an edit box. Listen to the announced control before activating it, especially when several similar fields appear together.

Microsoft documents that scan mode turns off automatically in edit fields so you can type. Up or Down can leave the field and resume scanning. When a letter appears to perform navigation, check the current control and scan-mode state before repeating it.

Verify a short mixed task

Read a heading, enter a short disposable phrase in the intended field and confirm the phrase. Return to reading and find the following heading. Repeat until the changes between navigation and entry are clear.

If behaviour differs in one application, record the application and the control where it changes. Scan mode can retain its on or off choice for an application, so another window need not behave identically.

Keep this first practice deliberately small. A successful test means you can identify where you are, enter the intended text and return to reading. It does not require memorising every command before Narrator becomes useful.

Sources: Microsoft Narrator scan mode; Microsoft starting Narrator.