I remember years back when one of my favorite columnists wrote of how she was addicted to candy crush. She talked to how she spent hours of free time gaming, that eventually felt the addiction made her loose valuable time that she would have rather engaged in other meaningful activities. The process of giving up the addition was a not a cup of tea, but a worthwhile battle that awarded ample spare to learn new skills and connect more with family and friends.
True to it many especially parents, have complained about adverse effects of computer games. We have also seen a few cases where violent games have instigated equally violent crimes, it also has a correlation to increased obesity, depression and social isolation. These can lead to other physical and mental challenges that would make an addict have difficulty in integrating with society eventually leading to premature death.
Before we get to such extreme lengths, as a parent, I would like to discuss some of the pros of computers games and how they can positively enhance a child’s upbringing. Initially, I had similar thoughts of computer games, they are bad! Bad! Bad! I would not want to spend any of my time on them until I had a different experience. There are a different set of games – programming games - that actually very health to children.
A few years back, I had the opportunity to work with an organization that trains young children on coding. I am not a tech person, but I believe that technology is going to evolve at a lightning speed in the future and our children will be at the center of it. Everything is already evolving, from employment, to farming, research, commerce, education thus making it more important now more than ever to equip our children with coding skills that empowers them to grow with computational thinking and problem-solving skills to crucial in this technological age.
What is coding? Coding in simple terms, is a computer language that contains a set of instructions that tell a computer what to do. In other terms, it is a script that a computer can understand. When you come up with the right codes, the computer will do exactly what you want it to do. A tech person would tell you it’s not a walk in the park, it involves lots of problem solving and understanding human behavior. It’s such benefits that the 21st century child requires.
Look at this when it comes to solving problems one needs to think outside the box-creativity, to talk about your creative idea sharpens both verbal and communication skills. And in doing this you need to work in groups and hence you develop both leadership and collaboration skills. All this involves careful planning and execution as such one arranges his/her thoughts and learns logical thinking which is a plus when growing up. Not every child will be privileged to become a computer scientist, but all these thought process, discipline and skill can help every child to excel in whatever field they choose to pursue.
I know you are probably wondering how all these can be harnessed, or how you can teach your child how to code with little or no coding skills. Don’t worry, according to Al Sweigart a software developer and tech book author in San Francisco, says programming video games is a common starting point for many young coders. Such games include Angry Birds, Minecraft, Flappy Birds, Five Nights at Freddy’s and others are prime sources of inspiration. For begginers, you might want to try out Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s scratch at https://scratch.mit.edu
The game has got a simple graphical interface, that allows kids to drag-and-drop code blocks, pieces of code that don’t make computational sense won’t fit together while those that do snap together. Scratch is great for younger kids who haven’t developed typing skills. One emphasis that I need to make, is that when training children how to code, avoid touching the keyboard or mouse. Instead point at the screen and explain to them what needs to be done from there, and let them puzzle it out. Kids tend to retain information better if they figure it out themselves, so don’t deny them that chance. If you have the opportunity to have a group set-up, encourage them to work in groups. This way they can share their ideas and develop both coordination as well as team building skills.
“Children are fast learners, unintimidated by lines of code, and their imaginations usually run wild, a true asset when it comes to finding creative solutions to problems.” - Marine Debelloir
For kids who have outgrown scratch, Al Sweigart advises that you try python. He says "Python is an excellent first programming language because it has a simple syntax (unlike languages such as Java or C#), and produces readable codes."
Remember coding is a hands-on skill and requires practice, the more they code the more they perfect their computational thinking and problem-solving skills.
There are no books that teach you how to solve a problem, but coding provides an opportunity to learn problem solving. It’s like seeing a problem, try a solution, see if it works. If it doesn’t try again. And again until you find a solution that works.
One of my favorite quotes is from Margaret Meade: "Children must be taught how to think, not what to think." And coding does exactly that, it teaches children how to think!
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