Accessibility · Lesson 4 of 8 · 10 minutes

Accessibility: Keyboard order

Native links and buttons participate in keyboard navigation in source order. Positive tabindex usually creates surprising jumps.

Open the lab Course map

Mastery 0/3Run itExplain itApply it

Current edit

PreviewNo external resources

Your objectives

Hints are always available. Wrong turns never cost XP.

1
Build keyboard order
Build this first target: <a> (href="/web/") containing “Course”. Inspect the structure before checking the lesson.
Hint & worked example
Native links and buttons participate in keyboard navigation in source order. Positive tabindex usually creates surprising jumps.
The requested elements, attributes, content, and hierarchy exist outside comments.
```
<a href="/web/">Course</a>
```
Common mistake to avoid: A visual appearance alone guarantees the intended HTML meaning.
2
Extend the keyboard order example
Extend your file to include: <a> (href="/web/") containing “Course”; <button> (type="button") containing “Start lesson”. Inspect the structure before checking the lesson.
Hint & worked example
Native links and buttons participate in keyboard navigation in source order. Positive tabindex usually creates surprising jumps.
The requested elements, attributes, content, and hierarchy exist outside comments.
```
<a href="/web/">Course</a><button type="button">Start lesson</button>
```
Common mistake to avoid: Replacing semantic elements with generic divs automatically improves accessibility.
3
Verify the complete keyboard order pattern
Finish the pattern with: <a> (href="/web/") containing “Course”; <button> (type="button") containing “Start lesson”; <button> (type="button") containing “Show hint”. Inspect the structure before checking the lesson.
Hint & worked example
Native links and buttons participate in keyboard navigation in source order. Positive tabindex usually creates surprising jumps.
The requested elements, attributes, content, and hierarchy exist outside comments.
```
<a href="/web/">Course</a><button type="button">Start lesson</button><button type="button">Show hint</button>
```
Common mistake to avoid: A visual appearance alone guarantees the intended HTML meaning.

Understand the pattern

Native links and buttons participate in keyboard navigation in source order. Positive tabindex usually creates surprising jumps.

Misconceptions to reject

A visual appearance alone guarantees the intended HTML meaning.
Replacing semantic elements with generic divs automatically improves accessibility.

The preview is a sanitized subset, not a full browser compatibility test.

Worked example and expected result

<a href="/web/">Course</a><button type="button">Start lesson</button><button type="button">Show hint</button>

Native links and buttons participate in keyboard navigation in source order. Positive tabindex usually creates surprising jumps.

Try a variation

Adapt the final example to a different project name while retaining its structure and relationships. A different context still needs a real browser and accessibility check.

Explain it

Which statement correctly explains keyboard order?Replacing semantic elements with generic divs automatically improves accessibility.Native links and buttons participate in keyboard navigation in source order. Positive tabindex usually creates surprising jumps.A visual appearance alone guarantees the intended HTML meaning.

Apply it elsewhere

You reuse keyboard order in a different project. What must still be verified?The meaning, relationships, and accessible names in the new document.Nothing; passing a single exercise guarantees every future use.Only whether the source code has the same number of lines.

Keep the momentum.

Complete the lab, then explain and apply the pattern.

Next: Accessibility: Visible focus Try an incident drill

Anonymous lesson and mastery progress lasts for this session. Sign in to keep synced lesson XP between sessions; mastery stays device-local. No speed bonus, lost lives, or hint penalties.

Keep learning

MDN: HTML structure