I have run a codeclub for 10 years. Here’s some quick thoughts: - Make them curious, if they are curious they will teach themselves. Example: don’t tell them what a for loop is, make a project where they really need it, but let them first to write it very verbosely without loops, then they will almost invent it themselves and be relived when you teach them (same style can be applied to most things) - make projects th…
Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
11–20 of 104 posts
Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#12these three fields underpin all advanced sciences
Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#13My teenagers have zero interest in programming. They like just about everything else other than programming. They both have the ability, but it’s not what they want to spend their time doing.
Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#14Touch typing is fun amd magic for kids. 9 more keys left out of 26 for my kid. I clearly see her developing muscle memory faster than I did myself.
Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#15Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#16Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#17I think it's best to start close to the goal and move into problem-solving once something is up and running and needs improvement or optimization. Focusing on CS fundamentals isn't always worthwhile, unless there's a genuine interest in computer science or math olympiad style problems. Today, we can operate at a higher level since most core algorithms are already available in libraries and frameworks. Just my two cen…
Roger that. I showed some Python magic to a pair of 10 year (or so) olds, they weren't too thrilled. Also Lego (my childhood magic) didn't do much for them. But they liked Minecraft well enough...
One of them is now an engineer, slinging C and Python as needed.
Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#18This was a really useful realization when I was teaching kids to code in person for ~5 years. I started off teaching Java with an abstraction layer (https://www.bluej.org/), but I found that many students would be intimidated by anything that ventured outside of the abstraction (e.g. just run `javac` on your computer with a `.java` file). My most successful students intuitively understood how to turn a text file on their computer into a useful piece of compiled code, or into a JAR bundle that they could share with others. They also used the various abstractions that were thoughtfully introduced over time - e.g. an IDE that gives you a run button, libraries like Firebase which enable some exciting multiplayer game options, and so on.
Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#19Re: Ask HN: How are parents who program teaching their kids today?
#20Give the kid some programming tools and leave him alone. Be there for questions, and brainstorming if he wants it. Otherwise let him figure it out. He'll shoot himself in the foot, and maybe get discouraged but if his interest is deep enough he'll persist.