I've done it. The best way I found was to setup a Minecraft Server and let them manage it. Keeping it up and running touches on every skill you need.
Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
31–40 of 138 posts
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#32Depends whether you want to teach code or computer science (and code). I wrote a book to teach 7-11 year olds to code in Python and Scratch and teach them some computer science along the way - I read a few other books out there first, and there's a lot of "just copy out this code and things will happen", which is exactly what I tried to avoid in this book. The reviews: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28232614-codi…
I'm a teacher - scratch and python
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#33codemonkey.com
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#34Earlier quoted context omitted.
The real question is "why JavaScript rather than Python?" The only reason JavaScript is so popular is that it runs in the browser. JavaScript is otherwise a pretty poor language, and certainly much harder to learn than Python.
Running in the browser and having pretty good debugging tools seems pretty useful to me.
Maybe brython can help with that!
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#35Game modding The first contact I had to actual programming was messing with Pawno scripts to make gameservers in San Andreas multiplayer when I was 12... Spent hours and hours programming with it. It started simple placing coordinates where the cars should spawn until I started to mess with more 'complicated' stuff like gates that open when player get near. I would get some game that is popular among kids that age (m…
Codakid (based in Scottsdale, Arizona) teaches kids how to code with Minecraft mods amongst other things.
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#36To teach them basic concept of coding you can always let them play Human Resource Machine, Android/iOS/Windows game created by World of Goo studio http://2dboy.com/
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#37I learned the basics of programming with Processing[0] and it was great! Seriously. It's basically procedural (but not turtle) graphics with a very simple IDE. You can also do animations and interactive stuff (mouse/keyboard), that's fun too.
The official one is in Java, but it's just procedural, little to no OO required. there's also Python/JavaScript versions, haven't tried them. Another bonus is, it's easily embedabble online. There's a built-in Java -> JavaScript converter, which lets you automagically run a Java sketch in a browser.
the rest of this is just me criticizing things I used and didn't like, so feel free to ignore
I tried reaching a friends' kid programming with Scratch and making any kind of more complex stuff was actually too hard because of the "simplifications" built into the language. Can't remember the details, but you had to use globals instead of passing parameters for something basic, like constructing objects.
[0] processing.org
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#38Best introduction to programming I've seen so far is a game called Human Resource Machine, good for all ages, available on Steam.
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#39Why specifically do you want them to design and build for the web? Seems like a tall order for 7 to 9 year olds.
A lot depends on how much time and interest they have. With some kids, you show them a few things and act as a resource to them and they are hooked and off to the races. With limited time (many kids are overscheduled), you need to adjust your approach accordingly.
I am a big advocate of Scratch as a first language. The payoff is very quick, "syntax errors" and fussiness over indents, capitalization, and punctuation are pretty much nonexistent, and there is a vibrant community with millions of examples to inspire and "remix".
There are a surprising number of online edutainment/learn to code services that flat out don't work for 7 - 9 year olds because the software developer threw up their hands at the prospect of complying with COPPA and just set their terms to be "must be 13 years or older". I think it is a bad start to setting a child's moral compass to tell them "just lie about your age to access this service".
Re: Ask HN: How should I teach code to kids?
#40I teach. I have the kids learn Python between age 9 and 11 depending on when they are interested. We write games and learn the fundamentals of CS by following the curriculum of Rice's "Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python" class designed by Rixner and Warren. It has a Python interpreter and game library that compiles in-browser into javascript, which is a very helpful design for a first class, and for sh…
In respect to Minecraft, you can use Python to control aspects of the game in the Pi Edition. With Java, the Bukkit/Spigot API isn't too hard to understand, but I'm not too sure about how hard it would be for kids that age. Depends on their skill level and interest.