Get Your Child Excited About Coding For Kids!
Coding is the new writing. Once upon a time, parents worried about their kids developing good handwriting. Today, they worry about their kids developing their coding skills. coding for kids or computer programming has penetrated every industry. It has become a must-skill to ensure employability.
While the employment scene will change by the time your kids grow up, there is no denying that coding will continue to dominate as one of the fundamental skills required for landing a job. Given this scenario, it is always better to inculcate the skills necessary to become a good coder right from a young age.
Do you know how prolifically computer programming is used even in fields that aren’t traditionally associated with programming? From the time you first encountered coding for kids, you may have wished that you had started earlier to get a better grasp of the concepts and develop the logical thinking skills required to write efficient code. Well, you can do that for your child now!
Unlike the previous generation that mostly started using computers in their teenage years, the current generation has been exposed to them right from birth. If your kid has seen your code and taken a keen interest, then it would be very wise of you to encourage that curiosity.
However, parents often wonder what they can do to develop their child’s coding abilities. Here is everything you need to know to contribute to your child’s growth.
Use The Right Learning Tools
Your 8-year old watches a video about things you can do with a computer program and wants to learn more about coding for kids. If you introduce them to the usual “Hello World!” program, they might think that coding is boring and lose all interest.
You have to use age-appropriate tools while training the child to code. Unlike the time when you learned to code, there are fun new ways to teach kids. There are many visual programming tools such as Scratch, Tynker, Alice, GameSalad, etc. that present the coding exercise as visual blocks. The child needs to move the blocks to the right place and compile the code to create an animation.
These tools help in familiarising children with coding. It helps them understand the basic building blocks of coding for kids and gives an insight into the programming logic. For kids aged 11 or younger, this is the best way to start coding.
Kids aged 11 or more might be able to understand text-based coding for kids. You can introduce them to various text-based coding tools such as Code.org at this age. These resources use fun lessons to introduce kids to coding.
Make Coding For Kids Fun
Children will not be interested in pursuing something that they find boring. Unlike other subjects, the first introduction that you had to code and the first introduction your child has to code are drastically different. When your child shows interest in coding, you should find ways to make it fun and engaging.
The best way to do this is to use game-based coding for kids tools. These tools show a visual representation of the code logic. It keeps kids engaged. The animations and colors make it seem more like a game than academics and therefore, they get more interested in it.
Don’t Force It
Children have a short attention span. Sometimes, they just pick a hobby and leave it after a few months or once they are bored. This is perfectly normal.
It also means that you cannot force them into liking coding. If they are coding now but seem uninterested later, then don’t push them back into coding for kids. You can ensure that the tools and resources are at hand, and you can even continue using them yourself in front of your children. You just cannot and should not force them into learning to code.
Get Proper Guidance
As previously stated, the age at which you learned to code and the way you learned to do it is drastically different from when your child is learning to code. This presents a unique challenge. With all other subjects, since you started learning them at almost the same age as your child, you will have a good idea of how to approach them.
The same cannot be said for coding for kids. Your child may have doubts that you may not be able to clear. You need to teach them things at a different level. Most programming resources are written at a high school or college level and fail to meet the needs of a child.
All of this makes it pertinent that you get proper guidance for your child. You need someone who has experience teaching kids to code. They will be well-versed in the ability to translate tough programming language into terms that your child can understand with ease.
The proper guidance can be the crucial factor that determines the relation your child has with coding for the rest of their life.
Make Your Child The Next Tanmay Bakshi!
You must have heard about Tanmay Bakshi, the 16-year old IBM software developer from Canada. With the right training, your child can also become interested in coding and continue to have an illustrious career in programming.
The key is the right training. Here is where LearningBIX comes into the picture. LearningBIX offers carefully curated age-appropriate courses that will help develop your child’s coding skills. LearningBIX analyses your child’s capabilities and recommends courses that are well-suited for their temperament. What are you waiting for? Step into the future with LearningBIX
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